You Have No Idea What I'm Capable Of
by Greenhough15
Summary: Emma is a newly single parent going through a rough time, at home and work. Can Regina help her with both, and maybe go the extra mile for Emma? And will Emma be able to be open about her feelings, and take the chance? Rated M for language and later sexy times. Story contains a touch of RedBeauty.
1. Black Roses

**A/N – This is my remake of the story 'You Might Find You'll Like It' which was my own story. I hope people gives this story the chance it deserves, and people respond better to it than that of the last version. There are some big differences in this story, but it is still a Swan Queen Babysitter story. This story is written from Emma's point of view at all times. Please enjoy, and let me know what you think. **

It had been a really long year. Everything just decided to happen at once. Neal deciding to leave me. Leave Henry. Mom and Dad choosing to give the company to me. Henry reacting badly to Neal walking out on us. It just felt like the whole world was against me right now. Like everything was out to get me. And I just couldn't handle it. I was so glad I had the help of my friends. Without them, I think I might have already crumbled and died a slow and painful death. _Ow, what the fuck?_

"Are you even listening to me?" Henry had come storming into the living room, complaining about something new, like he did every other ten minutes. This time I just wasn't in the mood, so I zoned out.

"I might not be listening, but that is no reason to kick me in the shin, kid."

"Don't call me that. I'm ten now. You can't keep treating me like a little kid." He was starting to scream, and as always, I screamed back, and it turns into one big screaming match, of who can scream the loudest.

"I'll stop treating you like a kid, when you stop acting like one. Until then, deal with it. This is my house and you will-"

"Actually Mom this is Dads house. But you kicked him out. So I think seeing as how this is his house, I'll act by his rules. But wait, he doesn't have any. Looks like I can do what I want." I jumped up from couch, and looked him square in the eye. Now when I was screaming, he knew I was mad, angry and just generally irritated with him. It was when I got quiet he needed to start worrying.

"Don't you dare, use your Dads leaving us as a reason to try and get back at me. And you know very well, that he left on his own accord. I never kicked him anywhere. As much as I may have wanted to, I never did anything to push him out that door." He never looked away, and neither did I.

"You did everything you could to push him out the door." His voice was quiet and broken. I could see the tears beginning to swell up in his eyes. I knew he missed his Dad, but there was nothing I could do about it. He turned away from me, picked up his coat and headed for the door.

"Where are you going?"

"Anywhere you're not." He slammed the door behind him, and I was alone once more. I slumped down into the couch, and just started to cry. Everything just made me cry lately. I couldn't control Henry. I didn't have a clue what to do with the company. I am twenty-nine. How the fuck was I meant to know how to run my own company? There was a knock at the door which made me jump out of my skin. Henry has his own key. And I wasn't expecting anyone round today. I wiped my tears away, and straightened myself out. I stopped just before opening the door, trying to gather my thoughts. I took a calming breath and slowly opened the door. And I was so happy to see who was standing on the other side of it. Her blue eyes, were hard to miss.

"Belle." I let out a breath I didn't even realise I was holding.

"What did you do this time?" My eyes shot wide open at the accusation.

"What are you talking about?"

"I passed Henry on his way out of the house. He did not look happy Emma. So come on, what happened?" I stood aside to let Belle into the house. I was going have to tell someone, and I knew Ruby would gossip about it, so it was safer to tell these things to Belle. We went to the kitchen, and Belle took up a stool at the counter. I got the coffee machine ready and turned back to explain the situation to Belle.

"We got into another argument again."

"Well I could have told you that." I glared over at her, and didn't even bother trying to hide the growl that escaped me. "Sorry. So what was it about this time?"

"The same as always. Neal." I turned back around, and poured two cups of coffee. I passed Belle hers and leant against the surface she was sat at. "I just don't know what to say to him. He thinks I pushed Neal out the door. But he left on his own. I woke up one morning and just found that damn note on the dresser. _I just can't keep living this lie anymore. Tell Henry I will always love him. _And no matter what I say to him, he doesn't believe me. I even showed him the shitty note."

"Language Emma."

"Not the time Belle." She dipped her head, and I continued to explain. "We just can't even have a normal conversation anymore. And to top it all off, my babysitter for Henry, Tink?" Belle nodded to say she knew who I was referring to. "Yeah, she has up and left. She ran away with some pirate boy. She left me a voicemail, saying something like she was going to _sail the seven seas_, or something like that. So now I have no babysitter, a child that hates me, and a company that is crumbling in my hands. Honestly could things get any worse?" I dropped my head into my palms trying to push back the tears that were threatening me once more.

"Yes actually. You could be losing your home, or you could…" I split my fingers to look through at Belle. "Oh, it was rhetorical wasn't it?" I nodded slowly, and made the movement as clear as possible just to emphasise the point. I leant back and stood back up straight. Just as I was about to continue speaking there was another knock at the door.

"I seem to be popular today." I left Belle in the kitchen and went to answer the door. Those long brown locks, combined with the wide toothy grin could only be coming from one person. "Ruby!"

"Emma!" We dove into each other for a tight embrace that was long overdue. "Long time no see stranger."

"You're telling me. What are you doing here?" We broke apart but before she could answer we both turned to the kitchen where we heard a ruckus coming from. We saw Belle, lying flat on her back with the chair fallen to the floor. She must have fallen off the chair.

"Hi Belle." Ruby had stepped inside slightly to get a look at what had happened.

"Hi Ruby." Belle gave her a small wave from the floor, and quickly tried to pick herself up. It wasn't the most graceful thing to watch, so I decided not to. As she was doing so I was trying to think of why she might have fallen off the chair, and then I registered the fact that from where she was sitting she couldn't get a good look at Ruby. Belle had been crushing on Ruby for god only knows how long, but had never done anything about it.

"Please come in Ruby." She stepped inside fully and made her way to the kitchen where Belle was straightening out her clothes.

"I can't stay for long. I am only on my lunch break. God I hate working Saturdays. You guys are lucky. Belle, you only work weekdays, and Emma you run your own company so you get to choose when you want to go in. I on the other hand, get stuck working all week and Saturday, and I still get asked to work over time during the week. And then the boss never pays me for it. I swear to god, my boss hates me or something." Ruby took the seat next to Belle, and I could see so easily that Belle became very tense. One of these days, that girl is going to buck up the courage to ask Ruby out.

"So why don't you just quit. Or just say no to the extra time, if he doesn't pay you for it." I know Belle wasn't going to say anything, so I might as well ask her something.

"Have you ever tried to say no to Mr Gold? It is like writing your own death wish." I set Ruby's cup of coffee down for her. She took a quick sip before continuing. "No thank you. I am more than happy to just complain to you guys." She turned to Belle and smiled. Belle returned the smile, but it was more of a squiggle across her lips. She needed to get some serious confidence. "So what's new with you guys?" Belle looked over at me. I knew if I didn't saying anything then she would. At least about this particular topic.

"I had another argument with Henry." I deadpanned. Ruby had been with me through it from the start so she knew all the issues I was having with Henry about Neal.

"Neal again?"

"Yeah. But, don't worry, he is just going through a phase, and I just need to let him sort things out on his own." The room went silent for a second, before something else popped into my head. "Also, I now have no babysitter for Henry. Tink…left." Ruby didn't quite understand the whole situation, but she wasn't going to bother asking.

"So what are you going to do?"

"Well, you wouldn't be able to look after him occasionally would you?" I scrunched up my face as I asked the question. I knew it was a long shot, but I figured it wasn't going to hurt to ask her, right? Ruby looked shocked that I even thought to ask her.

"Are you kidding? Considering the extra time I am putting in, and the only time you ever really go out, is if it is with myself, Belle or Blue, which isn't very often since she spends all her time helping people and doing all this charity work. So sorry, I can't be your babysitter." I slumped into the counter behind me, and tried to think of someone else. "But I might know someone that would be willing to do it." My ears perked up at hearing the small glimmer of hope that Ruby was holding in front of me.

"Really? Who?" I was almost bursting with excitement.

"Well, it's a woman I work with. Her name is Regina. She loves kids from what she has told me. She doesn't work nearly as many hours as I do. And she seems like a reasonably responsible person. She is only about twenty-two, twenty-three. I could ask her if you want."

"Yes. Please." I was leaning over the counter Ruby was resting on. Nearly entering her personal space. I hadn't gone out for a while. Tink had been _busy_ before leaving, which meant I couldn't get out the house. And I didn't like to leave Henry alone for the nights. He might think he is already an adult, but he still has the fears of a child.

"Okay. No problem. Shall I give her your number if she says she is up to doing it?"

"Yeah, go ahead."

"Cool." She downed the rest of her coffee, and hopped off the stool. "And on that note, I had better get back to work. If I am late, Mr Gold completely bites my head off. So I shall see you lovely ladies around, and I will ask Regina and see if she wants to help you out."

"Great. Thanks Ruby." She started heading for the door, and I just stayed in the kitchen with Belle.

"Bye Ruby." Belle finally spoke once more. She said all of four words to Ruby while she was here.

"Bye guys. See you later." She was gone in an instant. I turned back to Belle. I looked at her like she was some sort of idiot.

"What?!" She raised her hands in defence, and I straightened myself up, and tried to do my best impression of her. And over the years, I had gotten pretty good at it.

"Hi Ruby. Bye Ruby." I returned back to normal, and leant back into the counter glaring at Belle. "You know one of these days, you are going to have to tell her how you feel."

"No. I can just admire her from a distance," She slumped onto the counter. "And act like a goofball when we're near." She dropped her head against the counter, and just stayed there. I moved around the counter and patted her on the back. I pulled her up off the counter and looked her dead in the eye.

"Love is never easy. And when you finally have it, it gets even worse. Just try talking to her. She doesn't bite. And unless I am blind, I think she actually kind of likes you. But you talk so little around her, she probably thinks you don't like her or something." Belle gasped at the realisation of her actions.

"I think you're right. I keep pushing her away, and I don't even realise I am doing it." I checked the time and saw it was almost one. I needed to go into the office, I hadn't been in since Thursday, and I hate to think of what might be happening at the moment.

"Belle, I need to go into the office. Are you gonna be alright? You're not going to have a meltdown if I send you back home are you?" Now she was looking at me like I was the idiot. "Had to ask." I went round the house and grabbed all my stuff for work. I probably could have done with changing clothes, but I didn't have the energy or the patience to do that right now. My clothes were clean, and that was good enough for me. So I pushed Belle through the door, and locked the door behind me. Good thing Henry does have his own key. I just needed to try and work on one chaos at a time. And right now, Henry wasn't the one that needed looking at. And as bad as that sounded in my head, it was the truth. He was so desperate to prove he is a grown up. And if I tell him otherwise, it will just spur him on to try and prove it even more. It is sometimes just better to leave him to his own devices, and wait for him to call for help.

**A/N – Okay so that is the start to the new story. I hope people like it, and that it gets a good response from everyone. I would prefer it if people were to not make any comments about the old story, I would rather we just let that go now. That being said, I would just like to thank the people that PM me, and said that they liked the last story. And to make it clear to all, I did speak with Chrmdpoet about the stories issues, and apologised for any problems it may have caused them. Anyway, please comment and review what you thought, and I hope to post again soon. Goodbye my lovelies.**


	2. She's So Lovely

**A/N – I hope people liked the first chapter of the story. I think this story has a lot of potential, and I hope people continue to support me. Please enjoy the latest chapter.**

_I just needed to try and work on one chaos at a time. And right now, Henry wasn't the one that needed looking at. And as bad as that sounded in my head, it was the truth. He was so desperate to prove he is a grown up. And if I tell him otherwise, it will just spur him on to try and prove it even more. It is sometimes just better to leave him to his own devices, and wait for him to call for help._

I made it into the gallery pretty soon. It didn't seem to busy. But to be fair, I wouldn't know what busy looks like. This place didn't normally get many visitors. I headed straight for my office, and got straight to work. I might not be overly interested in this place, but my parents put everything they had into it. The least I could do was keep it going. There was a hard knock at the door, and when I looked up to see who it was, I was met with a panicked looking Graham. He had been my assistant since taking the place over. He was very good at his job, most of the time. Other times, he needed to get a clue.

"Miss Swan?" I waved my hand for him to enter the room.

"For the thousandth time Graham, call me Emma. Now what is it?" He handed me a whole stack of paper work. So many words. So little time to read it all. I glared up at Graham, not even giving the papers a second glance. "Make it short for me Graham."

"Well, you know we have the gallery's annual event in a month?" I didn't like where this was going. That was the biggest event of the year for this place. It helped us get more well-known pieces in the gallery, as well as interested buyers who look at the auction section. If anything goes wrong on that night, all hell is going to break lose.

"Yes, now what about it?" I knew my tone was starting to become aggressive, but considering what I was feeling right now, I was doing well to keep it contained.

"Well, turns out the event planners we hired, are fakes. Their company doesn't exist, and everything they said they had organised, isn't. So basically, we have hundreds of people coming in a month with absolutely nothing planned, and nothing prepared." I let him finish before I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself down. Which failed miserably.

"Are you kidding me?!" I jumped from my chair and slammed my hands down to the desk. I was so glad my office was in a separate part of the building to the main viewing areas. I knew it wasn't his fault, but I needed to scream at someone, and unfortunately he was the only one around. "How the hell did this happen?"

"We don't know. We checked their website, turns out it was fake. Everything we saw of them was fake. Hence, that we have nothing planned for the event. No food, drinks, decorations. Nothing." I had about a thousand questions running through my mind, but I needed to focus on one at a time.

"Okay, first things first. Have you alerted the police?"

"Yes, I called them as soon as I found out. The police are working to find the people involved and hopefully retrieve the money we paid them."

"Okay, that brings me to the next thing. How much did we pay them?" I sat back down into my chair and started looking through the papers Graham had handed me earlier. He had his own clipboard in hand, and started looking through his own copy.

"We only paid them half of what they were due, so we lost two and a half thousand dollars. But we still have our extra money in case this sort of thing was to happen."

"Okay. Fine. We can work with that. Finally, we need to work on getting a new event organiser. Anyone who can plan the event in under a month. Go." I barked at him. He always seemed to respond better when I did. He was gone in a flash, and left me to try and salvage anything from this train wreck. But if this company was as sneaky as I think, I could be in some real trouble right now.

I decided to leave the events issues alone for a while. I was starting to get frustrated with all the information it was telling me, but it wasn't telling me anything I actually wanted to hear. I focused on the work I needed organised for right now. I had a few new pieces coming in so I needed all my paper work in order. If one I wasn't dotted or one T wasn't crossed, I might not get the piece, which cause me all kinds of trouble I really don't need or want. I wasn't going to have two things going wrong at the same time.

"Emma?" Graham had come back, and he had a smile on his face. _Please tell me he had good news for me_. I called him forward and he practically bounced into the room. He stood just in front to of the desk, hands clasped together in front of him. His grin only grew, but he didn't say anything.

"For crying out loud Graham, spit it out."

"I found someone who can work the event." His face said he still had more to say. I waved my hand as if trying to get him to continue his train of thought. "They are coming round in half an hour to get started." And that was why he was so happy. My mouth opened wide and I swear I would have screamed with joy if I wasn't at work.

"Graham, if I was into you I would kiss you right now."

"I think I might have to pass on that one anyway." He turned and started heading back for the door. "I will leave you to your work. Shall I send the person through when they get here?" He was standing in the doorway, leaning against the frame.

"Uh yeah just send them straight through to me, and I can work directly with them." He was about to leave completely when something popped into my head. "Hold on. Two things. One, where did you find this person? And two, what is the person's name?"

"I called up that place that has a person for everything. What is it called again? Oh yeah, Mr Gold's Variety Business. And the person he is sending over is called…oh crap I don't remember the first name. I know the surname was Mills, but he was rather excited about the call. Apparently he has been looking for the extra work for his company. So he was rushing through half of what he was saying. But, I will send her through when she gets here. Don't you worry." He walked away without saying another word. I kept thinking about the kind of person that would be coming to plan the event. Graham had said it was a girl. She works for Mr Gold. I wonder if Ruby might know her. I called Ruby up quickly just on the off chance that she did know who was being sent my way. The phone rang twice before Ruby's perky voice came ringing from the other end.

"Hey Emma. What's up? And be quick, I shouldn't answer my phone at work."

"Just wondering, I am getting someone from where you work to come and help me plan my event for the gallery."

"Wait but I thought you…"

"Long story. Anyway, does the surname 'Mills' mean anything to you?" There was silence coming from her end of the line. I assumed she was trying to recall if the name rang any bells. But when she spoke, her voice told a different story.

"Uh, no. I have no idea who that is. Good luck with your meeting." Her voice seemed far to giddy. She knew something, but before I got the chance to ask, she spoke once more. "Alright, I got to go. Bye Emma." She hung up the phone before I could say a word, and I was left with the sound of the dial tone. _Sometimes I could quite happily kill that girl. She never likes making my life any easier._ I tried not to think too much about the person coming. From the way Ruby acted, she was going to have a huge laugh about our meeting. But I couldn't figure out why. So I let the thoughts die in my head. The time went by quicker than I had originally thought. Before I even knew it, I had Graham knocking on my door once again, and behind him I could see parts of the womanly figure, I assumed was the person sent by Mr Gold.

"Emma, this is the lady sent from Mr Gold's. Her name is…" He stood to the side and I finally got the full view of the gorgeous woman that had been a mystery to me. "…Regina Mills." _Oh shit._ She made her way over to my desk, and I raised from the seat and met her on the other side. She extended her hand out in front of her, and I took it without even thinking. Her touch was so soft, so delicate. And yet her eyes, they were almost the opposite. I looked her right in the eye, and those dark brown pools didn't give anything away. She wasn't an overly tall women, so I was looking down on her slightly, but she made up for the lack of height with the regal poise with which she held herself.

"Regina Mills. Nice to meet you." I stood with my mouth open, practically drooling at the woman. It took me a second before I realised I was still shaking her hand and hadn't introduced myself yet.

"Sorry. Emma Swan. Look forward to working with you." We let the others hand go, and my body moaned at the loss of the contact.

"Likewise." _This girl could cause me some trouble._

"As you can see, we are home to some of the most amazing pieces of work people will ever see. We are always looking to expand on our collection, and that is where our event comes into play. So do you think you can do it?" I had showed Regina round the entire gallery. She hadn't said much during the tour. Only asking the occasional question here and there, but other than that her mouth hadn't moved. Her lips remained shut. Those plump, delicate looking lips. _God, stop it Emma. You barely know the girl._

"How far away did you say the event was?"

"Exactly? The event is in twenty-nine days. Is that going to be enough time?"

"I only need twenty-five. I have plenty of time. Don't worry. I will have this place filled from front to back, and looking amazing."

"Fabulous. If you manage to pull this off…"

"It isn't a question of 'if'. I will pull this off. The question is, how long do you want to have people talking about this for?"

"Cocky. I like it." She started to walk around, but quickly turned on the spot to face me.

"Not cocky. Confident. Now I need to be going. I have a few things I need to sort out at the office, and then I am all yours for the next month." _You had better be. _"I'll be seeing you around."She turned to walk away, and as I watched her saunter off, my head started spinning.

"Goodbye Miss Mills." She stopped and turned to look at me once more. A menacing grin on her lips. Something told me this girl had something hidden up her sleeve. And I was going to make damn sure I found out what that thing was.

"Goodbye Miss Swan." And I was definitely going to tell her never to call me that again. She left the room, and she left me with one thing running through my head. _Please tell me that girl is single. _I spent a little longer in the office but I just couldn't focus. The only thing my mind seemed interested in right now was Regina. She was just so professional, so composed and so…regal. And she used every bit of it to her advantage. She worked it down to the last light smirk of the lips. And it was all of that that kept her on my mind. When I finally decided I wasn't going to get anymore work done today, I packed up my stuff and headed out the office. As I passed Graham in his office, I popped my head in.

"I'm going home for the day Graham. I'll be back in on Monday morning. Oh, and sorry for snapping at you earlier. I just wasn't really in the mood for any more bad news."

"That's okay. Have a nice weekend Emma." I was about to turn away when he called me back with a sense of urgency in his voice. "Oh, and Emma. Be careful with this one. She seems like a handful." His voice was laced with the cheekiness that matched his face.

"Something tells me you're right. But let's see what she is like on Monday. First impressions aren't always the most accurate." And now, I really did leave. But I brought all my thoughts of Regina with me. And they didn't look as though they were going anywhere tonight.

**A/N – Okay, I am really enjoying this story. And if people are wondering how Regina is meant to babysit Henry and plan the event for Emma, this will be explained in future chapters. So will many other things that are a mystery at this moment. But for now, leave me comments and reviews, and I hope you keep going with this story. Goodbye my lovelies.**


	3. Human

**A/N – I am literally loving this story. Sorry for changing the title, but I just didn't really like it. Thank you all for the continued support for this story. I don't know if it as good as the last one, but I plan to make this slightly more interesting soon enough. As always, reviews and comments are always welcome, and I hope people keep with the story, I can't tell you how much your support really does mean to me. Anyway, onto the next chapter.**

"_Something tells me you're right. But let's see what she is like on Monday. First impressions aren't always the most accurate." And now, I really did leave. But I brought all my thoughts of Regina with me. And they didn't look as though they were going anywhere tonight._

I walked through the door, I called out for Henry.

"Henry, you home yet?" I was returned with simply the echo of my question ringing through the, apparently, empty house. I guess he still had some steam to blow off. If he wasn't back by six, I was going call him to tell him to come home. And if he didn't pick up, I was going to have go looking for him. He couldn't stay out late. And he certainly wasn't going to stay out without my knowing of where he is. If he is at a friend's house, then that is fine, but he wasn't going to stay outside after dark. It was only five now, so he had an hour to come home, or have me chasing him around. Unfortunately this sort of thing became a common occurrence for us. He would walk out angry, and I always ended up having to try and find him. It wasn't a good routine by any means, but I didn't know what else to do. If I tell him what to do, he just pulls back even more. I don't tell him what to do, he gets into trouble. I keep finding myself caught between a rock and a hard place with him. A knock at the door brought me out of my ever plummeting thoughts.

"Ruby! I am so going to kill you." Ruby walked into the house with the biggest smug grin plastered on her face. She waltzed over to the couch and plopped down in the middle of the seats. I took a place in one of the single seats. Her grin never faltering.

"So I take it you met Regina."

"You think. You could have warned me that the person coming to work with me was also going to be my babysitter." It may not have seemed like a big thing to be upset over, but I wanted to meet Regina on my own terms. Get to know her as a person and see if she would be good to babysit Henry. Meeting her at my place of work, was not what I had in mind.

"Oh relax. You met her. So what did you think?" She had a smirk on her face, but I couldn't quite work out what it was for.

"She is a very nice young lady. And she actually seems very respectable. Now would you please explain why you have a smirk on your face reaching from ear to ear?" She sat up on the couch and got comfortable for something big.

"You didn't notice anything else about her?" I still didn't understand where she was going with this.

"I am sure I noticed plenty more about her. What is it exactly you were hoping I would notice?" She moved closer to me on the couch, and leaned in close.

"Emma, you know what I am like when it comes to people. How, I know what they like. And how, I have this way of just understanding others. Especially when it comes to attraction." _Oh shit. _Now I was starting to see where she was going with this. "Well, lately I have been getting a feeling about you, and that you haven't been completely honest with me." I moved my gaze to the ground. I didn't really plan on telling her about this, not any time soon at least. "Emma?" I looked up, and the look in her eyes told me I could trust her right now. That she would be there for me no matter what.

"Ruby, can I tell you something, and know you aren't going round to the whole town blabbing it?" She looked hurt but I knew it was just an act. I slapped her on the leg and she got serious.

"Emma you know you can tell me anything and I would take it to my grave."

"You remember how Neal and I met don't you? You were there." Ruby nodded at me. I think I was starting to confuse her with where this was now going. "Well, would you believe me when I said that he was my first and last **boy**?"

"Strangely enough, I could believe it. But I still don't get what you're trying to tell me."

"He was my first and last boy. But he wasn't my first." It took her a second before the light bulb clicked on and she caught on to what I meant.

"Wait, you were with a girl before Neal?"

"Well, I was eighteen, still a virgin, and I was looking to experiment. And being with a guy scared me I guess. So I wanted to start of easier if that makes sense." Ruby nodded, and was clearly thinking through what I was saying.

"A girl isn't as aggressive as boys. Not as dominating. You feel like you're on equal terms."

"Exactly. Well, I went with a girl, and I found that I really liked it. But the thought of being with a boy still made me curious. So I went with a few more girls just too sort of boost my confidence. And then when we went out that night to party, and I slept with Neal, I found out that I really didn't want to sleep with men anymore." We both let out a small laugh, and it just relaxed the whole atmosphere. "It was only meant to be a one night stand, for me to have that experience. But it turned out that one night was all it took. And when my period was late that month and I took the test, I freaked. I panicked. I got hold of Neal and told him. Give him his due, he was straight in there saying he wanted to be part of Henry's life. And I couldn't really deny him that chance." I started to get quiet, beginning to think about what I did to him afterwards. "When I told him, he tried to kiss me. I stopped him, and told him I wasn't actually into guys. He was confused at first but when I explained that he was my first and that I was just testing things out, he understood. So we talked about what we were going to do. I was in no way ready to tell anyone that I was a lesbian. That was the last thing I wanted to do. So we decided that we would live together and raise Henry, but we wouldn't actually be together. We never did anything a married couple would do." I finally finished speaking, and I thanked the gods Ruby had just sat there and didn't say anything whilst I was talking. I don't think I would have been able to start again if she interrupted me.

"So wait, if you two were together for the sake of Henry, why did he leave?" That was the question I knew was coming.

"When his note said _I can't keep living this lie,_ he was talking about how I didn't love him. He loved me, and he had made that clear on many different occasions, but I could never return what he felt for me. And he was tired of being with me all the time, and never being able to touch me. He told me about it a while back, but I just said that there was nothing I could do. The idea of being with a guy just made me cringe. And I just couldn't give him what he wanted." I was close to tears, and I could see Ruby was choking some back as well.

"Emma, I am so sorry, I had no idea you and Neal were having so many issues."

"It's okay. How could you have known? We always put on our brave faces around everyone. We wanted to keep up appearances. Not raise any suspicion around anyone. It was just easy to handle that way. And that meant hiding our pain." We sat in silence for a moment letting all that had been said wash over us. As my brain was running back through the conversation, I realised Ruby still hadn't told me why she was so smug when she heard I had met Regina. "Now will you please explain to me the fascination you have with me and Regina?" Ruby started to laugh which was never a good sign.

"Not until you tell me what you really noticed about her." I might as well now that she knows my dirty little secret.

"Fine. I'll admit it, she is one damn good looking girl. But so what? I doubt she would ever be into me. I doubt she even likes women. She probably has a new man crawling at her stiletto high heels every day. What possible chance would I have with her?" Her grin only grew when I asked the final question.

"More than you think. See, the thing for working for Mr Gold, is that he has certain rules. And one of his rules is that you must be open about your sexuality, in order to make people more comfortable, and so people know who they can and can't go for. Anyway, getting off track. When Regina informed us of her sexuality, she said, and I quote, _any girl looking to have a good time._" My mouth dropped down to my chest with that. There was no way those words came from her mouth. "You would be surprised by Regina. She might still be young, but she has the sass, of a black diva. And the confidence like no one I have ever seen before." Maybe Regina was more than she chooses to show. "Why not go for it? Just give it a chance. Who knows, you might find she sweeps you off your feet." Everything was rolling around in my head, when I noticed one thing wrong with Ruby's plans.

"Ruby, you do realise I have met the girl once. And I wasn't even acting like myself around her. And from the way you're describing her, I don't think she was either. Try and give me an answer for that one smarty pants." Ruby thought it over for a second before bursting back into it.

"Well, you will be working with her all day at the gallery for a month, and then she is going to be babysitting Henry for you, right?"

"Well, I am going to see her at the gallery, but I forgot to ask her about the babysitting thing. And even if she did do the babysitting I wouldn't see her then because I would be out. Hence needing her as a babysitter. What did she end up saying anyway?"

"Oh my god, do I have to do everything." I slapped her lightly on the arm. She rarely ever did anything. "She said she was more than happy to babysit Henry. I gave her your number, and I would have assumed she would have given you a call. Anyway, I'm sure she'll call soon. Back on track though, if she does babysit Henry, when you get back from whatever you were doing on the night, just talk to her. Get to know her. Offer her a drink. Just get her talking. And you might find she opens up quickly."

"Thanks Ruby, but maybe for now it would be better to just keep things professional. Say I were to go out with her and things went bad, I would have to see her almost all the time, and things would be really awkward between us. And I don't think I could handle that. Maybe after the event, so that way if things do go bad, I won't have to worry about seeing her every day." Ruby contemplated my compromise, but I knew she wasn't going to give up quick so easily. She might cave now, but give her a week and she will be on my case again.

"Do you even realise how negative you sound right now? But okay, that seems fair." We sat together just trying to retain everything that had just happened, when something popped into my thought train.

"Rubes, when you had to say what your sexuality was, what did you say?" She took a deep breath as if preparing herself for something big. Her cheeks were starting to go red, and I could see she was struggling to gather her words. "Hey, don't worry. If I could tell you I was into women, you can tell me anything."

"When I said what my sexuality was, I said…I was bi, with a preference to women." She said it so fast I almost missed it. For a girl who was normally as obvious as a fire truck, she certainly seemed shy about admitting that. "And, there is something else." I looked at her, and gave her a reassuring look. "You know Belle?" My heart began to sing. I tried to keep a straight face, but it was quickly becoming difficult. I nodded quickly, waiting anxiously to hear Ruby say what I knew Belle was dying to hear. "I have had a huge crush on her since the first time I saw her. I just haven't ever been able to ask her out. I don't even know if she is into women. Do you?"

"I know more than you think. Ruby, Belle has wanted to ask you out for years now. You both have just been so scared to ask each other out. Honestly it has been like watching my own TV programme in reality. It has been so funny, but at the same time, it has been so hard not to tell you. She made me swear not to tell you, which I am now breaking, but with good reason." I finally stopped rambling and saw those sparkly white teeth on Ruby's face. She was clearly as happy as I knew Belle would be. "Now, next time you see her, would you please ask her out on a date. I think I might go insane if I have to listen to Belle complaining about how she can always look at you, but never have you for herself. It has been pure torture for her. And as the good friend I am, I just sit there and laugh."

"Sure, no worries. Now that I know she is into me, it takes off so much of the pressure." I smiled at my friend because I knew that she and Belle were a good match. They would be happy together. I looked up at the clock and saw it was coming up for six. I figured I might as well and call Henry, and get the daily finding over with now.

"Can you just give me a second? I need to go call Henry to tell him to come home."

"Sure. Take your time. I'm not going anywhere." I laughed and moved off from the seat, and headed for the kitchen. I dialled Henry's number and wasn't surprised to hear it go to voicemail. So I hung up without leaving a message, and went back to Ruby.

"Okay, well Henry isn't answering his phone, again. I'm gonna give him a few minutes then call Hansel's house. If he isn't there, we are going searching."

"Oh, do I really have to go with you?" She started whining, and after the day I have had, I so wasn't in the mood. I tried to make my tone as joking as possible, but it didn't quite go as well as I'd hoped.

"Yes Ruby. Because my son is only ten, and is still afraid of the dark, even he tries to say he isn't. He still has to sleep with a night light. So yes, you can come with me. You can use that freaky nose of yours to track him down." She reached up and started holding her nose.

"I don't have a freaky nose. I have a sensitive nose."

"Sensitive? Ruby you found my phone when I lost it somewhere in the south end of town. And all you did was smell it out. You have a freaky nose. It's like some kind of super power."

"More like supernatural power."

"Call it what you want. It still freaks me out." She started grumbling under her breath, but I just ignored her. I called up Hansel's house, and his mother answered instantly.

"Hello?"

"Hi, this is Emma, Henry's mother. I was wondering if he was there at all. He isn't picking up his phone and he and Hansel are good friends so I was just curious."

"No, I am afraid I haven't seen Henry round here today. Is he alright?"

"I'm sure he is fine. He just doesn't want to talk to me right now. Thank you anyway. Goodbye."

"Good luck finding him."

"Thanks, Bye." I hung up the phone. As nice as that lady was, her voice drove me crazy. She was always so chipper, and it made me go completely insane if I listened to it for too long. So I always limited talking with her to a minute. "Okay Ruby, grab your stuff. We're searching tonight." She groaned as she lifted herself off the couch and picked up her coat on the way out.

Ruby was like a bloodhound with her nose. And thank god she was. It would have taken me forever to find Henry if she wasn't with me. We were heading for the park. It didn't surprise me he was there. He would always go there to just try and calm himself down. He found it to be his own little area because not many people visited the park anymore. As we turned the last corner heading to the park, Henry came into view, as did a few things that I swear I was going to explode at. Henry was sitting on the park fence, with a group of boys surrounding him. I recognised them instantly. They were known as the lost boys, because they had no future and were just cruising along in life with no direction. They were into all sort of things. Drugs, smoking, alcohol. And what I saw Henry doing, sent my temper through the roof.

"Henry Swan. If you don't take that cigarette out of your mouth right now, I swear I will rip you lips off your very face." I was storming over to where he was sitting, but before I got there, he took another breath of the cigarette. His face made it seem like he couldn't care less. I yanked the cigarette out of his hand and through it straight to the ground. I grabbed him by the ear and pulled him away.

"Ow. Ow. Ow. Mum, you're hurting me." I stopped and let go of his ear. I turned to face him so he could see the full extent of my anger and fury.

"Am I now? Well guess what Henry, you have been hurting me ever since your father left. And you haven't seemed to care for one second how you have made me feel. You need to remember he walked out on me too. Now I may not have loved your Dad as much as I probably should have, but I cared for him with all my heart. And the last thing I wanted was for him to leave. And I am sorry you feel abandoned, but there is nothing I can do about that right now. I have told you over and over that he left of his own choice, but you refuse to believe it. You choose to blame me, and that hurts Henry. You have no idea. And yet I put up with it, because I think that you have a reason to blame me. I think that you are angry and that you need to let you feelings out on someone. So I figure, it might as well be me. Now, you are going to come home with me right now, and you are going to be grounded for as long as I see fit. You have messed up big time Henry, and pulling a stunt like that," I pointed back to the group of boys looking on at my blow out. I could feel the tears already streaming down my face. "That was the last straw Henry. Now get your ass home." He didn't know what to say. So he just bowed his head and walked past me. Ruby put her hand on his shoulder as he passed her, and he just shoved her off. I know he was mad at me, but he had no right to be cruel to Ruby. We walked home in silence. Henry walked in front so I could keep an eye on him, and Ruby and I walked side by side. Ruby caught a cab and headed back to her house. Leaving me and Henry to walk home alone. We got back to the house, and Henry stormed straight upstairs to his room. He slammed the door and I didn't hear another peep from him all night. I just sat on the couch and cried my eyes out. I never liked yelling at Henry. Nor did I like telling him the harsh truths of reality. But sometimes he needs to understand that I am not made of stone. I am a human being like anyone else, and I can break down. And as I thought about the day that occurred, I noticed I am ending the day the same way I started it. Sitting on the couch crying my eyes out.

**A/N – Okay, big emotional bit for Emma and Henry. Sorry to make it so surreal, but I needed things to go bad, before they get good. So I am planning to have happy family times in the future, but for now, times are tough. Please let me know what you think, and I love you all so much for your continued support. Goodbye my lovelies. **


	4. Daydreaming

**A/N – Okay my lovelies, let's see if we can't make a few things just that bit easier for Emma. And maybe make things that bit tenser between her and Regina. Got have a little fun with these two. Anyway, I hope people like the chapter.**

_We got back to the house, and Henry stormed straight upstairs to his room. He slammed the door and I didn't hear another peep from him all night. I just sat on the couch and cried my eyes out. I never liked yelling at Henry. Nor did I like telling him the harsh truths of reality. But sometimes he needs to understand that I am not made of stone. I am a human being like anyone else, and I can break down. And as I thought about the day that occurred, I noticed I am ending the day the same way I started it. Sitting on the couch crying my eyes out._

It was Monday, and I was so happy it was. It meant Henry was out the house, and I could go to work. Henry didn't say a word to me yesterday. He just stayed up in his room all day, and only came out for food, and the toilet. But he never spoke to me. I don't think he even made eye contact with me. I knew he was mad at me, but I had a right to be angry with him. He just didn't like the fact that he was grounded. And I couldn't blame him. I hadn't had to ground him often, but this past year I found I was grounding him every other week. It wasn't something I enjoyed doing, but it had to be done. But now it was just becoming pointless. I could ground him, and take away everything he owned, but he would still go out the next day and get into trouble again. I was just at the end of my rope. And out of options. So I just took it all day by day, and did what I had to do when I came to a new obstacle. Henry came stomping down the stairs and was going straight for the door.

"Henry, don't forget your lunch." He never turned around to look at me.

"Already have it."

"And make sure you come to the gallery after school, I am going to be working until about six tonight."

"Whatever Emma." Did he just call me Emma? Before I could say anything more to him though, he had already walked out the door. He has never called me Emma. He took away the title of being his mother. Why would he do that? Is he just trying to hurt me, because if he is, he really is going the right way about it? But I couldn't let it get to me. I had to hold strong. I couldn't show him any sign of weakness. Not now. So I held my head high, and headed out for work. But something told me today was going to be a long day. I hadn't taken two steps into the building when Graham was at my side. He rambled on about hundreds of things that didn't really interest me. He stopped for a second and then added one last thing.

"Oh, and Miss Mills is waiting in your office for you."

"Regina is here already?" My voice was a bit more excited than I had hoped to make it. I think I was giving myself away. He gave me a smirk. He was one of the only people who knew I was a lesbian. An office party got a bit too out of hand, and he caught me in one of the back rooms with one of the waitressing staff. Not my finest moment, but he understood, because he too was into his own gender. But we are both closeted, so we keep each other's secret, and have a good laugh about it from time to time.

"Oh, has someone caught your eye Emma?" His cheeky grin never left his face. He would pay for that one day.

"Maybe. But we shall have to wait and see." He turned and headed back to his own little office, whilst I slowly made my way to mine. Now that I knew Regina was into women, it made talking to her all the more nerve racking. If I wanted a shot with this girl, I was going to have to play my cards right. Be cool. Be smooth. So as I made my way into the room, I made sure to take a quick calming breath, and went straight to my seat. Regina was sitting on the sofa to the side of my room. "Good morning Miss Mills." I placed my paperwork on the table, and pulled my seat in.

"Regina, please. If we are going to be spending so much time together we might as well be on a first name basis. And good morning Emma. How are you today?" I blushed, feeling so stupid for calling her Miss Mills. But how was I supposed to know any different. This girl seemed to be two steps ahead of me at all times. I would be playing catch up for some time now.

"I am fine, thank you for asking." She just stayed sitting on the couch, looking at me. Those dark eyes could have me drowning if she wanted. I couldn't seem to leave them though. "Would you care to take a seat up here, and we can get to work." I gestured to the seat on the opposite side of the desk, and she moved up from the sofa and took the seat. She looked even better close up. Which is good, because some people can get uglier the closer you look. But not with Regina. It was as if, the closer you looked the more beautiful she became.

"So, what are we going to do first?" And her voice. So authoritative, and yet at the same time, so vulnerable. She had so many different aspects about her that fascinated me, and intrigued me. And I am sure she had plenty more that would surprise me.

"Well, why don't we just jump straight in and get the event ready. The sooner this things is panned, the better I will be able to sleep at night."

"Fine by me." She leant over on her chair and picked up her laptop and placed it on the table. Luckily my desk was usually fairly tidy, so I didn't have to move too much around. "Should we set up a shared file? That way we can work on the event and see what each other are doing."

"You can do that?"

"Yeah, it's really easy. Let me just send you an email, and all you need to do is follow the instructions. That way we can both work on all the spreadsheets, and documents, and we can see what the other one is doing. Plus we can both work on them at the same time." We went silent and I found the email, but I got confused straight away. I have never been good with computers.

"Uh, could you give me a hand quickly? I suck when it comes to technology."

"Sure. No problem." She got up from the chair and came and joined me on my side of the desk. She came up behind my chair and leant over to look at the screen. But honestly, if she leaned over any more, I swear something was going to fall out. She was wearing a low cut shirt anyway. But it was tight to her chest. It held everything in. But it really didn't leave much to the imagination. And I as struggling not to look over. "Oh, see? All you have to do is download these files, and then we can start working." She was pointing at the screen, which made her turn to me even more, and it made it virtually impossible not to look. So I snuck a quick peek. Although I might have chosen the wrong time to look. "See something you like Emma?" _Oh fuck._ I shook my head trying to clear it of all the thoughts that had just been running through my mind.

"I'm sorry. I was just…I don't even know what I was doing." I could feel my cheeks going red, and I knew there was nothing I could do to stop it. She pulled back slightly and whispered in my ear.

"It never hurts to look. But make sure you never touch." Her voice sent shivers down my spine and pooled between my legs. This girl was so much trouble. I don't think I really knew what I was getting into. She was going to be a challenge, and that was understating it really. She went back around and sat back in her chair. We worked in silence for some time. Working on the documents. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence. I don't think. But there was at least some tension between us. But what kind, was another matter. "What sort of entertainment would you want at the event?" She made me jump with the sudden question. I wasn't really expecting much talking.

"Uh, I don't know. Nothing to fancy. Maybe a small band. Or a solo singer. Just nothing to over the top."

"Alright." And she went straight back to working on the computer. It took me a while to get use to this type of working. We could see what the other was doing with all the spreadsheets, whilst we were working on them ourselves. But once I got the hang of it, I was fine. A little notification on the side of my screen popped up. It just said message. I didn't really know what it was though. If I got a message on anything, I would receive an email notification. This seemed to be on the spreadsheet. I clicked the little tab saying message, and it popped open to a messenger column. I was still able to work on the task, but there was a conversation section to the right hand side of my screen. And I saw there was a message from, _Regina?_ But she was sitting opposite me, why would she message me? The message read,

**Sorry if I scared you with the sudden question. Also, I'm glad I could have been an assistance earlier.** My breath caught in my throat after reading the message, I practically started choking. I made a quick save and just grabbed my bottle of water and had a quick sip. When I regained my composure, I looked back at the screen to find where I could reply. I quickly typed up a reply.

_You didn't scare me, I was just deep in thought and wasn't expecting anyone to say anything. And thank you for the assistance, I truly appreciated it. _She was probably talking about helping me with the setting up of the documents, but my mind just decided to jump to every wrong option possible. She replied quite quickly, I didn't even hear her typing.

**I'm sure you did.** _Oh my actual fucking god._ Was she trying to distract me? Was she trying to send my head spinning? Because she really was doing a very good job. I took a glance at the clock, and saw it was lunch time. Guess we had been working longer than I thought. I sat there for a second, thinking about what Ruby had said to me on Saturday. _Just give it a chance._ Why not? It couldn't hurt to ask, right?

"Regina, do you want to join me for lunch? I was planning on heading home for lunch, and I have yet to talk to you about the babysitting position."

"Sure. I haven't got anything else planned for today, other than working on the event. Just give me a second to save everything, and then we can head out."

"No problem. Take your time." I packed away all my stuff up and waited patiently for Regina to finish up herself. She didn't take long, and before I knew it we were in my car, driving back to my house. Whilst we were in the car, I figured it would be the best time to try and get to know Regina. "So, Regina. What sort of things do you like to do?" She didn't answer straight away, but when she did, I wasn't sure she would ever again be quiet.

"Well, I like lots of things. I enjoy a good night out on the town with the girls. But I also like the peace and quiet of the night at home. I like to settle down with a good book, and a nice cup of hot chocolate. It is pure bliss. And then I enjoy doing the weirder things. You know, the stuff that makes you step outside of your comfort zone. The last thing I did was…Actually maybe I shouldn't say." I looked over at her, and she was starting to curl into herself. "It is a bit embarrassing."

"Oh come on. You have been strutting around all day so far, as if you own the place. And you choose now to get shy. Come on, it can't possibly be that bad." She hesitated for a moment, before taking a breath.

"The other week, I…took a…pole dancing lesson." Okay wasn't expecting that.

"Wow. And, um…how…how was it?" I was trying to act as though it was nothing, but in reality all I could think about was Regina pole dancing, and it sent my hormones into overdrive.

"It was fun, but not something I would do again. I just didn't think it was really for me."

"Fair enough."

"Well, what about you?"

"What about me?" I knew what she meant but I was hoping the longer I kept her talking the less I would have to say.

"I said a few things about myself. It's your turn. It's only fair. And one of the things you say has to be embarrassing to make us equal." Shit, what the hell was I meant to say? I was running so many different embarrassing moments through my head, but I didn't want to say any of them. So I decided to start off with the easier things.

"Okay. Let's see. I guess I'm like you. Love a night out on the town with my friends. Even though they try and get me to do a load of crap with them."

"Like what?" We were only about five minutes from the house now. I might be able to get away with not saying the embarrassing moment.

"I'll tell you about that some other time. But, let's just say I never have a boring moment with them." She let out a small giggle. And I kind of liked it. Her laugh was so sweet, and innocent almost. It just seemed to fit her perfectly. "Anyway, I don't have many hobbies. Over the years, most of my time was devoted to looking after Henry, he's my son, and I guess I just sort of lost myself over time. I don't really know what I would do if I didn't have work. I don't really think that much about it. I am always keeping myself busy with something. But not something that I always enjoy doing." I started to trail off into my thoughts. Thinking about all I had done in the past ten years. And I realised the last time I did something for me, was before I met Neal. It was like, once I met him, I wasn't myself. Like something told me I needed to change. Because I was going to be a parent, I couldn't be me. I was so lost in my thoughts I almost drove past the house. "Here we are. Home sweet home." I pulled up into the drive way, and parked the car.

"You have a lovely home Emma."

"Thanks. It is nice, and big. Too big sometimes." We both got out the car and headed for the door. I pulled my keys out of my bag, and as we stood in front of the door, I could feel Regina behind me. I could feel her breath on my neck. I could feel her body pushing into me, and it made me nervous. And my hand started to shake. I started to struggle with the keys. They started to jingle. And then I felt a warm hand cover mine. The soft touch that warmed my heart, and made me feel lighter than a feather.

"Let me help." She moved round to my side slightly, still keeping body contact, and helped me with the key to open the door. I didn't look over to her. I knew if I did, I probably wouldn't be able to control myself. So I kept looking at the door as it swung open. I had to admit, this girl was smooth, and she knew how to work the game. And she was definitely winning at this moment. I walked into the house and went straight for the kitchen. I heard Regina close the door behind her, and the click of her heels on the wooden floor as she made her way to the kitchen as well. "You have a lovely home."

"Yeah, I just wish it was a lovely atmosphere."

"I'm sorry." She took a seat at the counter. Even in one of the higher chairs, she still looked tiny.

"Nothing, don't worry."

"No, tell me. You obviously meant something, otherwise you wouldn't have said it in the first place."

"It's a long story."

"Good thing we have time." She was persistent, I'll give her that. But I don't think this story was one I should be telling her after just our second meeting.

"Maybe some other time." I think she finally got the hint that I wasn't comfortable with the topic, although I guess it was my fault for bringing it up. But I was just glad she knew to back off. "I was just going to cook up some chicken breasts and fry some chips. Are you alright with that?"

"Of course. Anything I can help with?" I quickly thought through the recipe to see if I could put the girl to work.

"Uh, you could chop the potatoes up for the chips. I like making them from scratch. I just think it makes them taste better." She got up from the stool and moved round to the cooking area.

"Just show me what to do." I got her a chopping board, a knife and the bag of potatoes.

"First wash the potatoes then peel the skin off, and then you can just slice them into chip strips."

"Perfect."

"I'll give you a hand as soon as I'm done preparing the chicken breasts."

"That's okay, take your time. I think I can handle washing and cutting potatoes on my own." I let a small laugh escape my lips, and she looked at me like I had something growing out of my ear.

"What?"

"You laughed."

"And?"

"Nothing. It's just that was the first time I've heard you laugh. I mean I've seen you smile, but a laugh is something different." And just like that, she became even more attractive. We got to work on the food in silence. I wasn't use to working in the kitchen with someone. Neal never helped to cook, and Henry never set foot in the kitchen, so I didn't quite know how close I was to Regina, until I grazed the small of her back with my bum.

"Oh, sorry. I'm used to working in the kitchen alone."

"Don't worry so much. I've worked in smaller spaces than this." She turned back to the potatoes and started peeling the skins off. You didn't have to peel them, but the skins always made me feel sick. I didn't take too long with preparing the chicken, all I had to do was wash it, and sprinkle some herbs on it. Then stick it in the oven. When I moved round to help Regina with the potatoes, she had already skinned them all. And was about to start cutting the first one. How fast could this girl work? "Did I do something wrong?"

"What?! No. I was just surprised to see how fast you worked. It normally takes forever to do this. It took you about five seconds." She laughed. I liked the fact that I could cause her to laugh. I liked the fact I could make her happy.

"So, are you going to help me, or stand there ogling at my work?" I finally shook myself out of my state of shock, and picked up the knife.

"Sorry. Like I said. I'm used to working alone." We started chopping up the potatoes, and I tried so hard not to look at Regina. My head spun every time my eyes caught sight of her. But I had to look at her hands, just to keep myself at bay. And good thing I did. "Oh, Regina. You're cutting them too small."

"Am I? I'm sorry, I've never cut my own chips. I always use them out of a bag."

"No problem." Without even thinking I moved round the counter and came up behind her. "May I?" I held my hands up at her sides. I swear my brain wasn't working right today. She nodded and I slowly wrapped my arms around her, and took her hands in my own. I guided her hands and sliced the potatoes. She was slightly smaller than me, so it made it easier to do. My head rested in the crook of her neck. She was tilting her head to the side slightly, and I got an amazing view of that silk perfect neck. I had to steer my sight back down to the counter, or I might just have had her there and then. I tried distracting myself by talking to her. "See, too big and the potatoes don't cook fully. Too small and all you're eating is air." She turned her head so she was now facing me. I looked to her as she turned. Our lips only inches apart. I could feel her breath against my chin. She started leaning to me. I couldn't move. I was frozen to the floor.

"What are you guys doing?" I practically jumped out of my skin when I heard Henry's voice coming from the kitchen doorway. I never even heard him coming in. Wait a second. School isn't finished. I straightened myself up, and turned to Henry with a new sense of dominance, still reeling from the moment with Regina.

"Actually, I think the better question is, what are you doing home? School's not finished yet. You still have about another three hours." He suddenly went very quiet. Looking down to the floor. Wriggling on the spot. "Henry! What did you do?" My voice never faltered, and I was sort of proud of how well I was handling myself and my son right now.

"I got sent home alright."

"What for?"

"I got into a fight with some of the guys at school." I looked him over, and he looked fine from where I was standing. No cuts or bruises. But that wasn't the first thing to pop into my head.

"Why did you get into a fight?"

"They were picking on me. And saying stuff about Dad." He wasn't telling me something. He was trying to hide something from me, and he will one day learn that he can never hide anything from me.

"What else? They did something else to push you over the edge. What was it?" He stood there, hands in pockets, trying desperately to think of something to say. But he really wasn't good at lying. "Henry. Don't make me ask again."

"They we saying stuff about you. They were lying about you. Saying how you were just a floosy to Dad. And he moved on once he was bored of you. And after what you said to me on Saturday…I didn't want to listen to them. They were hurting you." He went quiet. And suddenly it occurred to me. I had told him something, and he had actually heard me. He listened to what I said, and he actually knew how I felt. Tears started to swell in my eyes. And I could practically feel my heart singing. I walked over to him slowly and as I reached within a meter of him, I couldn't help myself anymore. I pulled him into a hug that had been a long time coming. But he immediately started moaning. But not whining. It was a moan of pain. I let him go, and lowered myself to his level. He lifted up his shirt, and I finally saw the damage those boys had really done. He had bruises on every inch of his stomach and chest.

"Oh my god. Henry." I started turning him around to see if he was hurt anywhere else. He had a few cuts on his back, but other than that, nothing else.

"It's fine. It doesn't hurt that much, just when I laugh, or someone hugs me." I had tears running down my face from joy, and worry. But I still managed to show a smile at his spirits. "I was thinking I would just have a bath, and then try and sleep some of this off. Are you cool with that?" I looked him dead in the eye, and saw he was trying to be brave. Trying to put on a strong face. But he didn't need to anymore.

"Sure Henry. Are you going to be alright to do it yourself, or do you want a hand with anything?"

"I think I'll be alright. I'll call if I need anything. But thanks." I decided to let him do as he wanted. If he needed something, he would call for me. Even he knew his limits as a human being. I got up from my crouch, and sent him on his way. I kept my eye in him, till he turned and was heading up the stairs. I turned on the spot and saw Regina standing there, and suddenly realised she probably had no clue of what the hell just happened. I moved back over to the counter, and leant my palms against the top.

"How about, we finish up cutting the potatoes, and then I can catch you up on everything that just happened." She simply nodded. Lost for words. Which was certainly a first for her. But to me, it just made her look all the more cute.

**A/N – Ah, finally a happy time for the two. Both Emma and Regina, and then Emma and Henry. And fair warning, there will be other teasing moments in the story. I love a good show. I find it makes the story a bit more interesting. Anyway, comments. Reviews. Always welcome. Goodbye my lovelies.**


	5. I Have Confidence

**A/N – Ahhhh. I am falling in love with this story, and I hope you all are as well. This chapter is the continuation from last chapter when Henry had just come home from the fight. I hope everyone continues with their support, and I will continue to write amazing chapters. Enjoy.**

"_How about, we finish up cutting the potatoes, and then I can catch you up on everything that just happened." She simply nodded. Lost for words. Which was certainly a first for her. But to me, it just made her look all the more cute._

We left the food to cook, and made ourselves comfortable on the couch in the living room. We each had a drink. I offered her a beer, but she said she was more of a scotch girl. So we got settled, and as we sat opposite each other, I looked in her eyes, and I couldn't read her. She seemed almost shut off from the world. Like she had built a wall around herself, and it would take a wrecking ball to remove it. But I wasn't planning to give up on her so easily. She intrigued me, and I wanted to get to know her. No matter how much work it would take.

"So, what was that all about in the kitchen? With Henry?"

"It is a really long story. But I guess I can try and make it a bit simpler. Feel free to ask me any questions along the way if you get confused at any point." She smiled and nodded. I took a deep breath and tried to think of the easiest way of explaining this, without outing myself to her just yet. Got to give the girl a small bit of mystery. "Okay, where do I start? Uh, well firstly, Henry's Dad. He was called Neal. We met when I was eighteen. I was out for the night with a few friends, and I was…looking to have a good time. We went out to this club in town. I wasn't exactly enjoying myself. My friends all went off on the dance floor, and I don't dance, so I sat at the bar on my own. Then," I stopped for a second just remembering the night. "I felt this hand on the small of my back. I thought to myself, _great, someone else who wants to just try and by me a drink._ I knew I was looking for a good time, but honestly I had never actually…" I needed to be careful about how I phrased this now. "…been with a guy. And I wanted it to be with someone that actually made me laugh and not just want to get into my pants. I turned around to look at who was holding me, and I saw Neal. And the first thing he said to me was, **I take it this wasn't the kind of night you expected it to be.** And just like that, I knew he was going to be my first guy. And he was. He took me home that night, and it was," I looked at Regina, and realised I might have been going into too much detail for someone I didn't really know. So I tried to reel it back slightly. "Nice. He was a gentleman, and kind. But, I just didn't feel any spark between us. There wasn't anything that made my heart sing. So the next morning Neal was gone, and I went back to being me. It was just a one night stand."

"But wait, I thought your husband only left you recently."

"He did." She looked confused and so I continued to explain. "Turns out the one night stand is more than enough. My period that month never came. So I took the test and it was positive. Say hello to Henry." I tried to make a small joke, but I knew the topic wasn't exactly the most cheerful. "So anyway. I got hold of Neal and told him. He was more than happy to be the Dad, but I didn't want to be his wife."

"Why not? I mean I know you said there wasn't any spark, but you must have had some other reason surely."

"You're right. I had my reasons, and for now I would like them to stay that. My reasons."

"Fair enough. Continue."

"Well, we decided for the sake of appearances and for Henry of course, we would get married, but we wouldn't actually do anything. And it worked. For about the first three years. When we were so occupied looking after Henry we didn't really have time for anything else. Then Neal started to get a bit more, exploratory." I could tell she didn't really know what I meant. "He was pushing to see what he could and couldn't do. So he would wrap his arms around my waist, or kiss my neck. And I just didn't want any of it. I just didn't want him to touch me. But he didn't always understand that. Then one day, he just couldn't take it anymore. He left a note on the dresser and was gone." I finished and dropped my head to look at my hands. I hadn't been able to stop rubbing my hands against each other. I was so nervous. This wasn't a story I liked to explain, and yet I seemed to be saying it more often than not at the moment. "So I guess in one sense you could say, I did actually push Neal out the door. And I never did anything to stop him."

"It wasn't your fault. None of it was. If you didn't love him, and you didn't want him to touch you, that is your choice. You're a person too and deserve to be treated as such. But if you don't mind me asking, why is it you didn't want him touching you?" I swear explaining this story caused more issues than it solved.

"My own reasons. And that is all I am going to say for now."

"Okay." We sat in silence for a moment. She placed her glass down on the table and shuffled closer to me on the sofa. She leant forward and was leaning on her legs which were up and crossed on the seats. "But you can't blame yourself for any of this. There are just some things that are out of your control, and this was one of them. What you need to do right now, is be strong. For Henry," She paused and placed a hand on my leg. It sent a shiver through my body. Her touch was just so comforting, so reassuring. "And for yourself." I put my hand down on hers, and looked her in the eyes.

"Thank you Regina. It has been a long time since anyone has said something like that to me." We sat holding hands for a while. It was strange how comforting it was just to know someone was holding me. Someone who made me feel something.

"Emma?"

"Hmm."

"I have one more question"

"Shoot."

"If you married Neal, does that mean you haven't been with another guy since?" I was so glad she asked that the way she did.

"Yeah. I haven't slept with another guy since I met Neal." I didn't even realised I had done it, but at some point during our conversation, I had moved closer to Regina slightly. And I'm glad I did. I could hear Henry moving around upstairs, climbing out of the bath and moving to his room, when I suddenly realised. "Regina, I have been forgetting to ask you, you spoke to Ruby Lucas about babysitting for me right?"

"Yeah she gave me your number to call you, but I keep telling myself I will just talk to you when I see you, then I forget to talk to you about it." I noticed she was staring straight into my eyes. Like she was trying to find something. I couldn't help but let out a nervous laugh.

"No worries. But do you actually want to do that? Babysit Henry for me?"

"Yeah. I love kids. And Henry looks like a good kid, he just has lost his way a bit over the past few months. And you look as though you could use the break. I take it you haven't been able to go out in a while."

"Well, I did have a babysitter, but lately she has been busy and now she is gone altogether."

"Huh?"

"Different story for another time." I waved her question away, because I didn't even know the answer to the question myself. She smiled at me, and when I saw that smile, I lost all sense of feeling. My whole body just went numb. And I just sat there, looking at her smiling at me, and I could have quite happily done that all day. But turns out my phone had other ideas. "I'm sorry let me just grab this." I moved up off the couch, and my leg went cold from the loss of Regina's hand. I picked up my phone and went into the hallway. It was Belle. "Hey Belle, what's up?"

"Emma!" She sounded panicked, but not the fearing for her life kind so I figured she wasn't in danger. "I am freaking out a little bit."

"Belle, just calm down and tell me what is happening." She took a deep breath and slowed right down to speak.

"Well, Ruby came round this morning before work, and you'll never guess what she did," Actually, I have a pretty good idea. "She asked me out. And I said yes."

"Belle that is amazing. But I am slightly lost as to why you're freaking out."

"Because she asked me out for tonight, and I have no idea what to where or what to do. Help!" I knew she would be as nervous as hell, but she was calling me for fashion advice. I don't think she was quite in her right mind.

"Do I have to come over now? Henry got sent home from school after getting in a fight, and I have some company round." She stopped the minute I mentioned Henry, but I knew she hadn't missed the last part.

"Okay, you can explain the Henry thing to me when you get here. But who is your company?"

"Regina, the babysitter Ruby told me about the other day."

"Well that's perfect then. You can leave Henry with Regina, and then you can come and save me. Now hurry up." She didn't even give me a chance to answer before she hung up. She wasn't exactly giving me much of a choice. And I didn't really want to leave Henry with Regina. They had met each other for all of five seconds. Maybe if I had a small word with Henry, and Regina was alright to look after Henry it would be alright. I kept running things through my head, before walking back into the living room.

"That was my friend Belle. Apparently she is having a major crisis and needs my help. But I don't really want to take Henry with me. He needs to rest." I scratched the back of my neck almost feeling awkward for asking her this. "Would you mind watching him for a little while? If I don't go help her, she will come storming over here, and things won't be pretty." She tried hard not to laugh, but she couldn't hide the small smile that was gracing her lips.

"Yeah, no problem. I have my laptop with me so I can keep working on the event whilst you're out. And I can text or call you, I have your number. Actually do you want to add my number so you know it's me when I call you?" I got my phone back out, and started typing in Regina's details into my contact list.

"Okay, I am going to have a quick word with Henry, and then I should be off. Thanks again for being able to do this. It really is a huge help."

"No problem. Really. I'm here to help with anything you need me for." Oh. How the hell does she get in my head so easily? I got up from the couch, and headed up to Henry's room. I heard him move out of the bath earlier, so I knew he would be lying down on his bed. Probably reading a book. I knocked on the door lightly, in case he had gone to sleep. I crept into the room, and saw him sitting up on the bed with a book in his hands like I thought he would be.

"Hey kid. How you feeling?" He lowered his book, and looked up at me.

"Alright. The bath sort of relaxed everything. It doesn't hurt so much anymore." I perched on the edge of his bed.

"Good. Okay that makes what I'm about to say slightly easier I suppose." He looked at me with a curious face. "Belle just called me said she is freaking out. She needs me to come over and help her with something." He started to look disappointed, but I knew something that would persuade him. "If I don't go there, she will come here." He instantly started to panic.

"Go. Go. Go to Belle and help her with whatever." He was practically shoving me off the bed. When he first met Belle they got along really well. Then when she found out he had a love for books like she did, she became insufferable. Trying to force read Henry all her favourite books. He liked to read, but at his own pace, and his own style. I stood up to show I was leaving, but I leant down to give him a kiss on the head first. Something he hasn't let me do for a long time now.

"Thank you. I shouldn't be too long, but Regina is downstairs and if you need anything just give her a yell."

"Wait, who's Regina?" I made my way over to the door, and stood in the doorway.

"She is the woman you saw in the kitchen with me. She is working with me at the gallery for the event next month, and she is also your newest babysitter."

"Um, okay. And you trust this person to look after me?" I thought about it for a second, before realising something.

"I trust Regina with you Henry." I trusted this woman with my son. I trusted her with the thing I cherished the most. And I trusted her with my whole heart. I left his room, and headed back down the stairs. I grabbed my handbag from by the door, and went to speak to Regina one last time. "I almost forgot. When the food is ready, just serve it all up, and give one of the plates to Henry. He won't say no to food. Have whatever you want. There are drinks in the fridge. If Henry needs anything I said he should just give you a yell. Uh, am I forgetting anything?" She got up from the sofa and moved round to where I was standing.

"Coat." She pointed to the front door, where my coat was hanging on its hook. "It started raining about five minutes ago." As I looked back to Regina she started rubbing a hand up and down my arm. It was soothing, and made me feel a bit less stressed about leaving Henry. I had done it before, but it wasn't easy leaving him with someone new. No matter how much I trusted her.

"Right. Thanks again." I made for the door, and grabbed my jacket. As I slung it over my arms, I heard Regina's heels clicking towards me. I turned and I almost walked into her. She was so close. And so vulnerable. I could just so easily give into my desires. I could lean forward a fraction and feel those soft supple lips upon mine, but I knew if I did, there would be no going back. I hadn't been with anyone I cared for like this. It was so new to me. And it scared the shit out of me. "I should…I should get going." She started to smirk slightly. Never said a word and nodded. I fumbled to try and find the door handle behind me. I couldn't turn around. It was like my body decided to freeze up. I finally opened the door, and backed out, almost tripping over the door step. As I closed the door behind me, my senses finally came back to full usage. I took a deep breath, and tried to calm my nerves which were buzzing throughout the entirety of my body. I quickly got into my car, and drove straight to Belle's.

XXXXX

"Emma! Thank god. Get in here." She yanked me through the door, not even giving me chance to say hello. She pulled me through to her bedroom where I saw at least ten sets of clothes sprawled out across the bed. "I have no idea what to where, and I really want to look nice, but I also want to be comfortable, but I don't want to come across as underdressed, or not really bothering." She hadn't stopped since we got to her room. I went over and placed one hand on her shoulder and used the other one to cover her mouth.

"First of all take a deep breath." She did as I told her to. But I could still see it in her eyes, that she was panicked beyond belief. I am going to remove my hand, but I need you to stay quiet so I can talk. Okay?" She nodded and I slowly released her. She did as I asked and stayed silent. "Now, let's take a look at what you have." I quickly scanned a few of her clothes. A few were eliminated straight away. Others were alright, but I knew she had better. As I was looking over her clothes, I thought I could fill her in on what happened to Henry. "Henry got into a fight at school today. That whey he got sent home. Apparently some boys at school were picking on him and saying stuff he didn't want to hear, so he started a fight. I don't know what the other guys looked like, but Henry has some cuts and a few bad bruises on his stomach and chest, but he is holding strong. He's a strong boy." Then I finally narrowed it down to two possibilities. The first one was a dark blue dress with lighter blue polka dots. It had a high neck line, with some netting on the chest. It stopped around middle of the thigh, and it did wonders for her figure. The other was a dark blue sequin dress, which tied up at the back. I held them both up in front of Belle. "Choose." She kept flicking between the two dresses, but her eyes rested on the polka dot dress. She didn't even have to say anything, I just discarded the sequin dress on the bed, and handed Belle the one she chose. "Now go get changed." I left the room so she could change in peace. I made myself comfortable in the living room, flicking through a few things on my phone. Sorting a few e-mails out. When I heard Belle coming downstairs, I turned my phone off, and waited for her to come into view. She looked stunning. She came down the stairs and was like a new woman. She had so much confidence when she walked. It was surprising what an outfit could do for a person.

"So, what do you think?" She held her hands out slightly so I could get the full look of her.

"Ruby won't be able to take her eyes off of you tonight." She tried to hide the blush crawling up her neck, but nothing was going to hide that flush of red. "So do you know what made her want to ask you out?" I had my own idea, but I wanted to see if Ruby had said anything to her. Judging by Belle's face, she did.

"She said I should ask you." I couldn't help but smile. I knew she wouldn't be happy when I told her, but she was so happy now, she wouldn't be mad at me for long. "Emma. What did you do?"

"I might have told her about your little crush." Belle readied herself to scream at me. "But in my defence she told me that she had a crush on you first. I just helped you on your end." She relaxed slightly. Still not happy about me spilling her little secret, but she moved over to the couch, and took a seat. I joined and tried to explain myself. "Well, Ruby came round my house on Saturday after I got back from work. And we talked about…" I paused remembering the conversation, and decided I would tell her my story some other time. She needed to focus on herself right now. "Stuff. And I asked her what she thought of you. And honestly Belle I didn't think she was going to shut up. She had been wanting to ask you out for a while, but you being the coward you are, she thought you didn't like her." Her face became a scene of worry and guilt. Then I thought about the conversation once more. "Well, that's not entirely true. She said she didn't know if you liked women. So I gave her a helping hand. Are you complaining?" She turned red once more. I'm pretty sure all she could think about was Ruby and how much they were both going to enjoy tonight. "Look, I can stay for a bit longer if you want to talk, but I do need to go back at some point today. I still have to work with Regina on the event."

"Wait, what? I thought you said Regina was your babysitter. Why would she be helping you with you gallery event?"

"Oh that's right you don't know."

"Know what?"

"The people that were meant to be helping me with my event originally were fakes, so we had to hire a new company. Graham called Mr Gold's place, and turns out the person Ruby was telling me about for babysitting, is now also the person helping me plan the event. Which basically means I am going to be spending all day with her at work, and then some nights, she will be coming home with me to look after Henry when I go out." There was plenty more to the story, but I thought I might let Ruby tell Belle. Ruby had done me a huge favour of suggesting Regina to me. She may not have introduced us, but she did tell me about her in the first place. And she helped me to open up about being into her. I felt like I owed her. And I knew how much she loved to gossip. This would be a massive scoop for her to share. And then I don't have to deal with the hundreds of questions I'm sure Belle will have for me afterwards.

"Oh, okay. I guess that makes a bit more sense now. Well if you want to head home feel free. I have another few hours before Ruby gets here. I just wanted to be ready early in case I thought something was wrong. You know what I'm like."

"Unfortunately I do." She tapped my arm, and I headed for the door. I stood in the doorway, and turned to face Belle for a final minute. "Do me a favour tonight and ask Ruby what the deal with Regina and me is." Her expression was complete confusion, and before she could say anything else, I jumped in to answer her unspoken question. "Just do it. I owe her a favour. And something tells me you might find it interesting what she has to say." And with that I closed the door. As I made my way back to my car I pulled my phone out, and typed a quick message to Ruby.

_Tonight, Belle will ask you a question. Answer it fully and don't hold anything back._

I sat down in the car and didn't even turn the engine on before I got the reply.

**How will I know what the question is?**

_Trust me, you'll know. Enjoy your date._

I didn't receive a reply, so I just assumed Ruby didn't want to question it any further and left it. I pulled up at my house, and just sat in the car for a minute. I thought to myself, _in the time of knowing Regina I have come clean to my two best friends, and felt so much freer for doing it._ I thought that maybe being with Regina would be good for me. I can finally be me, and not have to hide any part of me. And then I thought about how my family would react to me being a lesbian. After all those years of them seeing me with Neal, I think it might be a bit hard for them to digest. Mom certainly won't be happy. She is very old fashioned in that sense, and has always wanted me to find a good guy that will treat me right, and look after Henry. And she thought Neal was that man. And he was. For Henry at least. Just not me. And Mom never knew because we were always sure to act specially lovey dovey around her. I took one last breath, and got out the car. As I entered the house, I was met with a round of laughter, followed quickly by some loud moaning. I followed the noise to the kitchen to find Henry and Regina on either side of the counter with a book in hand.

"Hi guys. What's going on in here?" Henry was first to move.

"Regina was reading me the story Snow White and the Seven Dwarves."

"Am I missing something? I thought that was a story about how a young girl was forced to run away, live with dwarves and finally finds her true love. I don't remember it being overly funny though."

"It's not, but Regina keeps telling me all these different back stories to all the different characters. Like for example, the Evil Queen. She wasn't always evil. But Snow White had the Queens first love killed by not keeping a secret. Then she was saying how all the dwarves have their own separate stories. The dwarf, Grumpy, is a drunk who calls everyone sister. But my favourite one is how she managed to snake Little Red Riding Hood into the story. She is Snow Whites best friend. But the twist there is Little Red is also the big bad wolf. Her cloak keeps her from changing. It's the coolest thing ever." Henry was bouncing off the walls with excitement. I looked aver to Regina who hadn't moved from where she was standing, and just shrugged, as if she had no idea what Henry was talking about. Henry finally took a breath, and relaxed slightly. Regina finally backed off the counter, and walked up behind Henry.

"Henry, remember what we talked about earlier?" His whole face and body instantly deflated. He nodded his head whilst looking at the ground. "Can you go wait in the living room?" She walked right past me, heading for the living room. I turned back to Regina who had taken a few more steps closer to me.

"What was that all about?" I pointed behind me to where Henry had just disappeared to.

"Well, when I went up to give Henry his food, I had a little chat with him." I wasn't really sure how to take that. A woman who barely knew my son, having 'a talk' with him. "After he said a few things, I thought it might be a good idea for him to talk to you."

"No, that won't work. We don't talk, we scream at each other. And never get anything accomplished."

"Exactly. That is why I told him that when you got home, you two would sit down on the couch, and actually talk to each other." I thought about what she was saying. And she had a point. We needed to talk. The system we had right now, really wasn't working. "He needs to know his mother is here for him. But he needs to hear it from you." I took in what she was saying to me. Took a deep breath and moved into the living room. As I sat down on the couch, I noticed Henry fiddling with the hem of his shirt. He only ever did that when he was scared or nervous about something.

"Henry…"

**A/N – Okay, going to leave it there. The talk will be in the next chapter. It might be up tomorrow, or it might be up Sunday, not sure yet. Hope everyone is enjoying the story, and that you stay with it. Let me know what you think, and I'll see you next time. Goodbye my lovelies.**


	6. Decode

**A/N – Sorry I took longer to post this than I said. I've been having a rough few weeks, personally. Anyway as I was writing this chapter I found I wanted to try and make it very emotional, and get what everyone was really feeling to be conveyed properly. Hope you enjoy it. **

"_Exactly. That is why I told him that when you got home, you two would sit down on the couch, and actually talk to each other." I thought about what she was saying. And she had a point. We needed to talk. The system we had right now, really wasn't working. "He needs to know his mother is here for him. But he needs to hear it from you." I took in what she was saying to me. Took a deep breath and moved into the living room. As I sat down on the couch, I noticed Henry fiddling with the hem of his shirt. He only ever did that when he was scared or nervous about something._

"_Henry…"_

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

He was looking at me with those big brown eyes. My heart was telling me to tell him the truth. He deserves to know everything. Even if I don't think he is ready. But my head was telling me the complete opposite. It was telling me to protect his innocence. To let him stay a child for a little while longer. He doesn't need to have his heart broken.

"Please. Tell me the truth. I want to know what happened. I can handle more than you think." And just like that, he was able to help me choose.

"Henry, what I tell you…" I didn't quite know how to say this. I wanted to tell him everything, and I was going to, but I just needed to find the right words. "…I need you to understand that even with everything I did, I never regret having you. You were the absolute best thing that ever happened to me. And I would never change anything about you."

"It's okay, I know you love me. No matter how much we might fight." Maybe he was more mature than I normally gave him credit for.

"Okay. And tell me if you have any questions at any point." He nodded, and I tried to figure out how I was going to explain everything to him. I had to try and explain what happened between me and Neal. To tell him what had happened over the past few years. And why his Father had really left. That was the one I was most worried about. "Alright. Well when I was about eighteen, I met your father." I explained to Henry how Neal and I were just a one night thing, without yet letting him know the why of it. I told him how we were going to raise him together. And then I had to explain the bit I hated the most. "See Henry, you're Dad left because he wasn't happy. He wasn't happy with us. And by 'us' I mean, him and me. You had nothing to do with why he left. You know that don't you?" He nodded but looked down at his lap. He didn't always like to talk about this. "He wasn't happy because we didn't do any of the things a normal married couple did."

"But why? You two always seemed so happy and loving to each other."

"That was the thing. We always seemed happy. We made sure to act pleasant and everything when people were around. We didn't want anyone asking questions. And it made things easier on you."

"But I still don't get why you didn't do things like other couples."

"Well, when I met your Dad, I was…" How do I tell a ten year old boy, who is my son, that I was experimenting with my sexuality? "…trying out something new. Up until that point I…well, I hadn't…Henry before I met your Dad I had only ever been with women." His face never changed. As if he was trying to work out what I had just said. And then in the most contained voice I had ever heard him use, he practically whispered.

"So you had only dated girls until you had met Dad. And once you were with Dad you realised you didn't like it, so you decided you were going to stick with women. But when you found out you were pregnant with me, you knew that wouldn't really have been an option." He just summed up the past ten years of my life in to three sentences.

"How old are you again?" We both started laughing. Honestly, I knew Henry had grown up over the past year, but how did he get so smart? "But yeah that is basically it. So your Dad couldn't take the fact that he couldn't actually be with me, so he left. He couldn't handle being around me all day, and knowing he could never have me." I looked straight at him, waiting for some kind of reaction. I wasn't expecting him to lunge forward though. He wrapped his arms tight around my neck, and I held him close to me.

"Thank you." He spoke into my hair.

"For what?" He leant back to look at me once more.

"For telling me the truth. That is all I ever wanted. So thank you…Mom." A small gasp escaped me when I heard him call me 'Mom'. I couldn't hold back the tears that started flooding my eyes. I pulled him back in for a hug, and held him there until my tears began to die away. When we broke apart once more, I could see in Henry's eyes, he finally understood. "All I want is for you to be happy Mom." He never ceases to surprise me.

"And I will be. I just need to find someone I like, that you can approve of." We started laughing again, but it died quickly. "Why don't you go on up to your room, and I can finish a few bits up with Regina. Then we can go out to Granny's tonight and you can order you favourite. Sound good?"

"Yeah." He bounced off the sofa and ran upstairs. I sat on my own for a second before the click of those heels made me open my eyes once more. And there was Regina standing in the doorway. She was looking down, and shuffling her feet around.

"Regina?" She looked up, and something about her face gave away that she had something to say. There was a gleam in her eye. But I couldn't figure out what it was for. "What's up?" I got up from the sofa and moved round so I was standing just in front of Regina, but far enough away I wasn't invading her personal space.

"Nothing. I just…" She locked gazes with me, and took a step forward. Now this was starting to enter in to personal space. "I might have heard some of the conversation." My eyes shot wide open. A mixture of panic and infuriation. "I wasn't eavesdropping I promise, I was just checking to see if you were done, and then…" She stopped again. She seemed as nervous as I was talking to Henry. She took one more step forward and I could now begin to feel her breath on my chest. "I heard what you were saying about you love life. I heard what your preference was." Her voice started turning low, and raspy. She was hardly doing anything, but she was sending my head into a hurricane. "And I know Ruby can't keep a secret to save her life, so I assume you know that I am a lesbian. And if she didn't tell you, you know now." She started leaning in. Getting closer by the second. "And I have wanted to do this since I first saw you." She moved in and closed the gap between us. Our lips coming together in a soft chaste kiss. Her lips were so soft and she was so gentle. Everything about her was pulling me in. And before I knew it I was pushing her up against the wall. Deepening the kiss. Trying to feel as much of Regina as I could. Then a thought quickly crossed through my mind, and I stopped. I pulled back and left Regina gasping for breath against the wall.

"I'm sorry, I just...I told myself I wouldn't go for you. At least until the event was done." As she stayed looking at me, I could still see the lust sitting in her eyes. But I could start to see the beginnings of hurt and confusion. "It's just if anything happened, we would still have to see each other every day, and it would just be really awkward. And I wouldn't want that. At least after the event, we would be free to see each other when we wanted." She started moving towards me once more. Her eyes pure lust and want now. "Don't get me wrong. I want to. I mean, I really…" I looked over her body one more time. "Really do. But I just can't right now." The back of my legs hit the back of the sofa, and Regina continued to get closer. She had me pinned between her and the sofa. And I had nowhere to go. She took hold of my chin and made sure I was looking right at her.

"I can wait." I scrunched my face in complete confusion.

"What?"

"I can wait." She moved back and I could breathe once more. "That kiss was the best kiss I have had in a long time. If that is any reflexion on…well, let's just say, I think you will be worth waiting for." She had a smug look all over her face as if she had just won something. She started moving round to the front of the sofa and took a seat. She opened her laptop back up and turned it on. I hadn't moved from my spot leaning against the sofa. "Do you want to continue with the work or should I go and we can continue tomorrow." Her voice was calm and controlled, whilst being so alluring at the same time. I finally knocked myself out of my daze. She had me wrapped round her little finger, and was controlling me like a puppet. And I loved every second of it.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It had been over a week since I had kissed Regina, but it was like it never happened. We carried on working on the event, gradually getting closer and closer to the final result. She had yet to babysit Henry again, he was still grounded after what he did with the Lost Boys. He wasn't happy about it, but he understood my reasons for doing it. But Regina still came round the house most nights to continue with the work. For such a young woman, she has a lot of determination. She doesn't like to leave anything to the last second. She wants to get it done here and now. And even though we have been so focused on work, I have been able to spend more time with Henry than before. The other day we went out on a walk round by the local park. It was nice. We got to talk some more. Turns out he had more questions than he wanted to share. But we were working through it. One piece at a time. And that was all I could do. Slowly help him understand everything that had been going on in the past ten years. And he was handling most of it better than I thought he might. He had really surprised me over the past couple of days.

I had to work extra at the gallery today, so Belle offered to look after Henry tonight after school. I asked Belle if she could take him out for the evening. After all the things I have been putting him through, he deserved a nice night out. But spending the day with Belle was still keeping the punishment side up for Henry. Regina and I stayed working in the office until eight. It was later than I had originally anticipated, but we got a lot of work done. Which meant I could take tomorrow off. It was packing up time, but I wasn't quite ready to leave just yet.

"Regina, I am taking tomorrow off, so you don't need to worry about coming in tomorrow." She looked up from her laptop, and practically became part of the chair she was sitting in.

"Thank god. I am so tired, I could use the day's rest." She sat back up, and carried on typing away on her laptop. She closed the lid, and started packing away. It was killing me seeing her all the time. All I could think about every time I saw her was the kiss. And then my thoughts kept travelling to when I said I couldn't. I just kept kicking myself. Everything was telling me to keep going at that moment. Except for my subconscious. And I was worried I might have screwed everything up. I know Regina said she could wait. But I'm not so sure I can.

"So what are you planning on doing with your free day?" She looked confused for a second, as if she hadn't quite registered what I had said. But she didn't stay silent for long.

"Not much. Not anything really. I don't get man days off, so when I do, I never really have anything planned. What about you?" I had closed my laptop down as well, and was just gathering a few papers together.

"I was planning on spending the day with Henry. Maybe see if my friends want to make a day out of it. I haven't really told either of them about what happened last week." Her eyes suddenly got an evil sort of glint in them. But her face in general stayed completely poised. "If I don't tell them soon, they might end up killing me. Ruby certainly would. Is it okay if I tell them? I mean it would be effecting you if I did, so I just want to make sure."

"It's perfectly alright. In case you hadn't already caught on, I am not exactly shy. And certainly not about my personal life." She stood up from the chair, and I mirrored her movements. As we made our way out to the cars, we continued our conversation. "Thinking about it, how is Henry dealing with…everything" My heart swelled knowing Regina had concern for Henry.

"He is actually doing better than I thought he would do. I don't think I give that kid as much credit as he is due."

"Glad to hear he is alright with everything." We stood just by our cars, which were parked next to each other. I got here first this morning, so Regina must have parked up next to me. Either she was trying to see me as much as possible, or it was just a coincidence. But then again, I don't really believe in any coincidences. "So you got any other plans for tonight?"

"I was just planning to go home and unwind. It has been a long week." She didn't say anything, she just looked straight into my eyes. Her lips spread into a smile, and she just seemed so sweet. She acted as though she had genuine thought for me. And as she stared at me, I never looked away. And I could feel myself wanting to get closer to her. I wanted to feel her lips upon mine again. They were so soft, and I was starting to worry I would forget how she felt.

"So I'll see you soon. Have a nice evening." She turned away and was about to get into her car, before my feelings finally got the better of me.

"Actually, would you like to join me…back at my place, I mean. Henry is probably going to be wrecked from spending all this time with Belle, and I would love the company." She stood at her car door for a moment, not saying a word. She smiled even wider.

"I would love to. I'll follow behind you. So by all means, lead the way." She continued to smirk as she made her way into her car. I stepped into my own car, and took a breath. And suddenly, what I had just said, hit me. I had invited Regina back to my house. And chances were we would be alone once more. And the last time that happened, things started getting quite…difficult. I could barely stop myself last time. If anything happened now, I doubt I could hold myself back.

"Oh god. What am I doing?" I said to myself, as I started the car. The drive back, I was so anxious. There were so many things running through my head. A few were alright. It would just be me and Regina just talking all night. Others went off on slightly different courses. I pulled up into the drive, and saw Regina coming up behind me. We stood up out of the cars at the same time. As we were walking to the door, our last time here, kept running through my mind. And all I could think of was the fact that I made a complete fool of myself. I was determined to set the record straight, that I wasn't a complete idiot. And I did just that. I opened the door and remained perfectly calm and collected. It may have been a small triumph, but it was big enough for me to be proud of.

"Bravo. You learnt to open a door all on your own." She waltzed past me and headed for the kitchen. Her entire attitude was completely smug, but with a hint of mystery. It was like she was trying to make herself even more alluring to me, which personally, I didn't think was possible. But she never ceases to amaze me. "You have a note." Her voice shook me from my state of drooling. I hung my coat up, and followed Regina into the kitchen. There was a piece of paper on the counter. It read,

_Emma, Henry and I are going to go to the library. He wanted to get a few new books. Don't know what time you'll be back home, and Henry doesn't mind staying at my place tonight. I'll have him right ready for school tomorrow, so don't worry. Talk to you tomorrow. Goodnight. Belle._

I put the note back down on the counter and turned to Regina at my side.

"I guess we have the house to ourselves tonight." I figured we would be alone tonight, but I thought at least Henry would be upstairs even if he was asleep. It would be in my head that Henry was upstairs and someone was around. Now, there was no one. It was just her and me.

"Well then we had better make the best of the time alone." Just her words sent my heart racing. She could have me bowing at her feet if she told me to. I was practically powerless when she spoke. "Do you want to get a drink? We can just sit in the living room and talk if you like." What? Her voice was so calm, and normal. No hint of anything behind it. Maybe she respected the fact that I wanted to wait. That I couldn't do this now.

"Sure. What would you like? A glass of apple cider?"

"You got anything stronger?" She really was my kind of girl. I poured us two glasses of scotch and we took our seats in the living room. We sat opposite each other on the sofa. "So, how do you think the event planning is going?"

"It is going perfectly. Honestly, you have been an absolute life saver for me. You are just, amazing. Really, I think if you weren't here I might have drowned in my own panic by now. I just don't know how to thank you enough for everything you have done for me the past few weeks." I am sure I could think of plenty of ways to thank her, but none of which would be acceptable to do right now.

"Thank you. But you don't need to thank me. This is my job. It's what I do." She started to get that cheeky smirk again, that told me her mind was going in the same direction mine was. "But if you really did want to thank me…" Her voice was practically dripping with the seduction she was giving.

"Don't even think about it." I exclaimed jokingly.

"Too late. Already have." I couldn't help but laugh. Ruby was right when she said this girl wasn't shy about anything. She really put herself out there, and she was making it so hard for me not to snap her up.

"Changing the subject. You're what, 22? 23?"

"22 yeah. Why?"

"How is it that you seemed to have your entire life planned out, but you have barely even lived your life yet? How can that be?" She smiled, but it wasn't so much cheeky, as it was embarrassed.

"Well, when you have a clear view of how you want things to go, and parents that help you on your way, it makes it easier for you to do the things you want, or more importantly need. I will admit, there were plenty of things I had to give up along the way. For example, having many friends. Or any friends for that matter. I was always so focused on my studies I didn't have much time to socialise. And when I did, it never really went well. But, I wouldn't be here now if I had done anything differently. At least that is what I keep telling myself." She let a shy smile grow on her lips, and it was so sweet to see her be so open, and vulnerable. It is hard for anyone to be so open. I should now. But she seemed so comfortable and alright with doing so. "But, it's not like you haven't done well for yourself. You're 29 years old, and own your own art gallery. Granted some people might not think art is such a big thing to get involved in, but seriously. When you run your own business, it must be fulfilling."

"It would have been. If I had earned the gallery on my own. My parents decided to hand it down to me. But I don't mind. I enjoy doing the work, I just wish they would have chosen a slightly different time to give it to me. I think they gave it to me because when Neal left, they thought it would be some sort of pick me up. What they didn't realise was that it just added more stress and pressure to everything that was going on." I gave her a smile of my own, and it wasn't even one of my greatest ever smiles, it was a small simple one to say I loved my parents no matter what. However, the smile seemed to light Regina up even more. "What else would you want to do with your life?" The question almost took her by surprise. I don't think anyone ever really asked her what she might want to do.

"Honestly, I would want to do something in politics. I love the idea of having control of something. Or responsibility over issues. And just generally be the one that has to make the decisions. It all seems so crazy and hectic, but it is something I would love to do."

"Why have you never gone and done anything about it then?" Her face went grim for a moment, but when she shuffled around on the sofa, I think she was uncomfortable talking about this topic matter. "If you don't want to tell me, you don't have to."

"No it's not that. It's just, I've never really had anyone who told me I should go and do what I wanted to do. I mean, being an event organiser is amazing. I love doing it. But I just always thought I would be better used in other things. But my Mum always told me there was no point in dreaming. If I wanted to become a politician or a mayor of a town or something, it would only happen in my dreams. She was a great Mum don't get me wrong, but she never thought I could ever be good enough for something's. It was her form of tough love I guess." She stopped, and she just sat for a second, thinking. I didn't really know what to say. So all I did was place my hand on her knee to try and comfort her. It must have been hard for her to try and open up. But she did, and I'm not sure how either of us feel about that. She looked up at me, and as she did, her eyes filled with that life that she always has. That life that shows me she is so passionate, and caring, and will do whatever she can to make people happy.

"You know, I sometimes think that just talking about things, makes them easier to understand." She didn't react for a second. But when she did, my heart almost beat straight out of my chest.

"Thank you Emma." Those three little words. So simple, and yet that packed such a punch. And it made my heart swell. She had been very open, but hadn't always registered it all. And this now shows that not everything I do goes crap. I can help people, and make people happy, and feel good about themselves. And it turns out, the result is better than I could have ever imagined.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N – I am so sorry again for making you all wait for so long. I hope I didn't upset too many people. The updates won't be coming overly frequently as I am going to college now, but I hope not to keep you all waiting this long again. Goodbye my lovelies. **


	7. Just Give Me A Reason

**A/N – Ouch. I am so sorry guys for keeping you waiting. Honestly I feel seriously guilty. I hope you all are going to enjoy this chapter to try and make up for the wait. You might want to refresh your memory slightly, but if not…let's get on with the story.**

"_You know, I sometimes think that just talking about things, makes them easier to understand." She didn't react for a second. But when she did, my heart almost beat straight out of my chest._

"_Thank you Emma." Those three little words. So simple, and yet that packed such a punch. And it made my heart swell. She had been very open, but hadn't always registered it all. And this now shows that not everything I do goes crap. I can help people, and make people happy, and feel good about themselves. And it turns out, the result is better than I could have ever imagined._

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Regina, I meant what I said. You really have been amazing. I can't even begin to think about where I would be right now if you weren't here with me every step of the way. I mean Ruby and Bell are absolutely great friends and they have been my biggest supporters throughout the past year, but you just bring this whole new side to me. There is just something about you." We were still curled up on the couch at either ends, and had finished our drinks and neither of us went for the refill knowing we would possibly come to regret it in the morning.

"Emma, you really don't have to say anything. The whole point of me being here is to help you. As both your event planner and your son's babysitter. And you would be surprised at how well I can handle children." I couldn't help the smile grow across my face. Regina had such an innocence to her, and it just made my heart flutter. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing it's just…" I looked into her eyes and saw her curiousness shining in them. "Regina, have you ever done something? Something you knew was wrong at the time, but thought that it would all work out in the end?" Her face became a mixture of confusion, and concern that I might possibly be crazy. And I honestly couldn't blame her. I sound insane even to myself. "Forget it. It's stupid anyway."

"No come on. Tell me what you meant." She rested her hand on my knee, and whether it was her subconscious or just her, but she started rubbing her thumb around my knee, and it was so soothing and relaxing it was strange, but wonderful at the same time. "You can trust me." And it was scary how true that statement was.

"I just meant like, stealing a cookie from the jar, and just hoping your parents wouldn't notice. Something like that, but on a bigger scale."

"Are you trying to subtly tell me that you robbed a bank and are hoping the police won't notice?" God I knew this would be a bad idea to bring it up in the first place. "Emma come on. Seriously just tell me what you're trying to say. I won't judge you. I promise." I looked into her eyes one more, and saw no sign of trickery. Maybe telling her would be easier than just trying to beat around the bush.

"I guess what I am trying to say is that, I'm the child in the kitchen, and you're the cookie I am trying to steal." Yeah that sounded ten times worse coming out my mouth than it did in my head. I saw Regina's cheeks go bright red. And I am pretty sure that mine weren't far behind.

"You think I'm a cookie?" And that sounded even weirder. I took me a second to register what she was asking me, but I answered quickly enough.

"Yes. Maybe? I don't really want to answer that." Perhaps not my best response ever, but at this point it was better than sitting here with my mouth open waiting for the flies to swarm around it. Regina sat up from her side of the sofa and shifted into the middle slightly.

"Emma, can I be honest with you?" She seemed serious, so I took her for how she was acting.

"Of course you can Regina. What is it?" She took a deep breath as if she was readying herself for a massive speech.

"Would you believe me…if I said I was…" She looked as though she was really struggling to get the words out. She took a long pause and my mind managed to think of hundreds of possible endings to the sentence. None of which were correct. "…a virgin?" Yeah, not what I was expecting by any means.

"Honestly, no. I wouldn't believe you. But you have never given me reason to doubt you, so I don't know why I would start now. That and the look on your face is way too serious for you to be lying." It managed to make her laugh, even if it was just for the split second. "But wait, I thought you were this confident, don't mess with me, looks for fun anywhere and everywhere, sassy pants diva. Now you're telling me you have never slept with anyone. Something doesn't exactly add up here." She started fidgeting in her seat again before I took her hands, more by reaction than actual thought. "Relax. Think it through in your head first and then explain to me what the hell is happening." She took a deep, calming breath and finally looked straight into my eyes.

"Most of what you said was true. I am a confident, don't mess with me, sassy pants diva. And I do look for fun. I just never seemed to actually find it. I thought that I could find a girl at a random bar when I was like seventeen, eighteen. And I could just have my first time over and done with. All people ever told me was that the first time would hurt and the rest were pure bliss. But I never managed to find anyone. And as the years went on I just stopped trying so much. I wouldn't go out all the time. I only met new people through work, and personally I think I scare a lot of them. But I guess that I just never actually got round to having that moment. I mean, I didn't want it to be meaningless, so I wanted to have some connection with the person I slept with, but at the same time, I didn't want it to be with someone that I cared for so much in case it ended up being really bad and I ever wanted to speak to them again." I didn't do anything as Regina was practically pouring her heart out to me.

"Regina, why are you so…embarrassed to admit such a thing?" She looked up at me like I was a complete and total idiot. And I might very well have been.

"Because, saying that I am a virgin to a person I am extremely attracted to is not exactly high on my list of enjoyable things. You can't honestly tell me that you were still a virgin when you were my age." I simply looked at waiting for the shoe to drop. It only took a moment but she got there in the end. "Right. Forget I asked." It was true. I had gotten my first time done when I was younger than her. But that didn't mean it made any different.

"Regina, you need to understand. No matter what age you are, your fist is only ever going to be what you make it. And you only get to make it once. So don't go wasting it with someone you hardly know and barely care about alright." She nodded her head in agreement. The room went silent, and I was replaying a few of Regina's words in my head. And I couldn't help but question her about it. "Did I hear wrong it did you say that you are extremely attracted to me?" Her eyes practically bugged out of their sockets before she quickly calmed down.

"Like you didn't already know." True.

"Yeah. I knew. But you haven't actually said it out loud before now. It is one thing to know it for yourself, but it is another thing to admit it out loud. And I am really glad that you did." I don't know why, I don't even know how but my hand started brushing through her gorgeous, soft brown curls. It was oddly soothing for me, and I was hoping it gave the same feeling for her. And as I ran my hand through her hair, I could see the look in her eye. The look that I knew would only lead to trouble for both of us. But it wasn't as powerful as I had seen her before. This was much weaker, and innocent. She seemed almost nervous. As I ran all the thoughts through in my head, I knew that what I did next would kill both of us. I removed my hand from her hair, and got up from the sofa. I turned back to face Regina, and was relieved to see that she didn't seem hurt.

"Emma…I'm sorry I just…"

"Don't be. I'm glad you shared. I just think that maybe it's time we started winding things down for the evening." I looked at my watch, and found that it was actually gone midnight. Oh god. I couldn't let Regina drive home now. One it was far too late to be driving. And two she had already had a glass to drink. That is by no means a good combination. "You are more than welcome to stay here for the night. I have a guest bedroom, and I can lend you a pair of baggy clothes to sleep in for the night." She got up from the sofa and I could tell just from her expression that she was ready to argue. "If I hear anything but agreement come out of those lips, they will never be feeling mine again." It was a cheap shot, but it seemed to do the trick. She closed her mouth and simply bowed her head in submission. And who says you can't use sex as a weapon? She stood up from the sofa and opened her mouth once more.

"I was going to say, that I will stay so long as you don't give me any of your hideously baggy clothes. Remember, I am smaller than you, so any loose trousers you give me are likely to end up just falling straight off." The smirk that grew across her face told me she knew exactly what she was doing. I was trying so hard, not to show the effect she was having on me, but god she wasn't making it easy.

"Fine, I can give you a pair of leggings and one of my tank tops. Does that suit you?"

"That will be fine, thank you. But you are going to have to show me around a bit because I have only really been in about three rooms in the house, and none of them are upstairs."

"No problem. Come on, I'll give you the grand tour." Without even thinking about it, I grabbed her by the wrist and started dragging her around the house. Showing her all the rooms. I brought her around to my room, I don't even know why. I guess I was just on auto pilot. Showing her each room that came into my head. As we entered the room it quickly dawned on me what could happen, but it was too late to do anything about it. I know I was trying to wait, and hold off till after the event, and something like this situation wasn't going to help, but I didn't want to be rude to Regina and just tell her to leave. I couldn't do that to her. Especially when she has been so understanding of me. Doing that could just push her all the way out the door. Literally. "And this is my room." Regina stood into the room, and had a quick look around. "Over there I have my own bathroom. You should have one in the guest room for yourself." Her eyes had come to stop on the bed. She looked as though she was about to throw up. "Regina? Are you okay?" She tore her eyes away and looked over to me.

"I know this is going to seem like an awkward question, but when you were with Neal, how did…where did…Did you two sleep in the same bed?" She stopped and looked into my eyes, and I could tell the answer she was looking for, just by looking at her. And I had never been so happy to give an answer to anyone.

"Regina, I must admit that yes at the beginning of the relationship we slept in the same bed, but as the time went on, we simply became further and further apart. After a while I suggested that we no longer sleep in the same bed. I wasn't sleeping because I was feeling so uncomfortable knowing that he was near me, in such a close proximity. So we agreed that he would sleep either in the basement, or the attic. He chose the attic as it meant he wouldn't have to go past Henry's room all the time to go to and from his room." I could begin to see her face lighten, and a smile spreading across her face. And that might very well have been the best sight I have ever laid eyes upon. "It was a good arrangement. Henry never actually suspected anything. At least not until he was about eight. He thought it a normal thing for parents to sleep separately. Then he started getting a bit wiser to what was happening, and that is when things started to crumble. When life began to be hard."

"Emma, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have asked. It wasn't my place." She looked down to the ground as though she was ashamed. I took her by the chin, and raised her head to get her to look up to me.

"Hey, don't worry about it. You ask and I will answer. I won't tell you anything I am not comfortable with. Just relax. I don't have anything to hide. At least nothing I am aware of." It got her to laugh slightly. Just enough for her to smile again. "I am sure that I have plenty of secrets to hide…" I took a step closer to Regina. Everything I was doing right now was not what I should be doing. "…But none of them I would want to hide from you." Tears began to build in her eyes, and just seeing that began making me tear up. And just for a moment, it was like my body had a mind of its own. Like I was powerless to do anything about what was happening. I took a small step closer to Regina, never looking away from her eyes even for a second. As I leaned in a saw a flash of doubt come over her face. It stopped me from moving any closer. She looked up at me, and then took a quick glance down at my lips. I still didn't miss the look on her face that showed the sign of doubt. She was comfortable with this, but I didn't quite understand why. "Regina?" She took a step back and looked down at the ground. She tucked her hands behind her back, and finally looked back up to my eyes. I was about ready to cry at the sight of the pain on her face.

"I don't want you to do something you are going to regret later. You want to wait, and I am not going to make you do anything with me unless you are sure." She started heading towards the door wanting to leave. I grabbed her arm just before she got to the door. She didn't turn to face me, she simply stood still.

"I only wanted a kiss goodnight." She didn't move for a second, but she finally turned to look at me for the final time tonight. "I know it sounds selfish, but I don't want to forget what you feel like." As she turned completely around, a smile started to show in her face. Showing off those pearly white teeth. Something I would never get tired of seeing. She came right up to my body, and the warmth he was radiating sent shivers through my body. Control it was easy. Trying to ignore it wasn't so. She looked at me, with a smirk now resting on her face. She leaned in, but moved her lips to my cheek. She pulled back and the smirk had not left her lips. But I am certain some of her lipstick had.

"I guess you will just have to be as patient as I am. Good luck though. And goodnight Miss Swan." She turned back to head out the door, and her hips had just a bit more sway than usual. She really was a tease. And a good one at that.

"It's Emma!" I called to her before she closed the door on me. I looked around my empty room, and I couldn't help but think about everything that had gone on tonight. From Regina being concerned with Henry as we were leaving work, to her standing in my room, kissing me upon the cheek. Nothing about tonight has been normal. But it has all been so nice at the same time. It was as if no matter what Regina did, she couldn't put a finger wrong. But I was so determined to find something she couldn't do.

One thing that kept running through my mind was that Regina was a virgin. That was perhaps the strangest thing I had heard all week. But as weird as it might sound to others, I couldn't have been happier that she told me that. One because it means that she trusts me enough to say something like that to me. And two because it means that if everything turns out alright, I could be her first. And that is something that would be so special to have with her. She seems like such a sweet and kind-hearted person, she deserves to have someone that would treat her right. And I intend to do just that. But she was right. I asked her to wait and she is being respective of that. She might even be more respective than I am. And I wasn't going to ask her to stop. I would just be sending her mix messages, right? One second I don't want to even kiss, and the next I don't want her to leave my side. Christ I seriously need to get my shit together.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Emma!" A voice came ringing through my ears. But it wasn't Regina. I opened my eyes, and saw Belle standing in front of me. It took me a second for my eyes to adjust, but the brown hair and yellow skirt was a bit of a give-away. I rolled over on the bed to face up at the ceiling, before looking back to Belle. "Good morning sleepy head." Words didn't come to me this early in the morning. So all I could manage to let out was a low growl. I wasn't ready to form sentences just yet. I needed my morning coffee first. Then again I normally get up at…Oh shit.

"What time is it? I need to get Henry to school. Shit. Shit. Shit." I was jumping out of bed and trying to find any item of clothing that looked or even smelled remotely clean. Now was not a time to be waiting around.

"Emma!" I looked back to Belle, who hadn't moved other than to get out of my way from when I was jumping out of bed. Her face was like a stone. No sign of anything. How could she be so calm at a time like this? "Henry is already at school. Didn't you get the note I left for you yesterday?" I took a moment to think about what happened last night, and the only thing that came to me was Regina. Regina…shit. She stayed over last night. And if I know Belle, which I do, she will know very well that someone is here. She always had a thing for noticing the small things. Such as the blush that started creeping up my face the more I thought about last night.

"Right. Yes I did get it. Sorry it was just a long night. I need to go and check something…outside my room. Just wait here a second." I barely even faced the door before she started talking again.

"If you were going to 'check' on the half-naked woman in the kitchen, I already said hello. She told me to come wake you up." Half-naked? I gave her a top and bottoms to wear. "She is making coffee. So get dressed and join us downstairs." She walked past me, and out the room.

"Shit. Shit. Shit." I whispered to myself. I still hadn't told Belle or Ruby about Regina. But what was there to tell really? We had only kissed. And it was only once. It's not like either of us were proposing to the other. No. There was nothing to be freaking over. I am completely over reacting to the situation. I just need to take a deep breath and brave whatever is going to happen. There is nothing I could about anything now. So I might as well face it head on. I didn't bother getting changed. I was wearing decent enough clothes. From the sounds of it, I was wearing more than Regina. As I turned into the kitchen I found Belle sitting at the counter, cup of coffee in hand chatting. As my gaze moved to where Belle was looking I saw Regina turned away. She still had the tank top on, but she wasn't wearing the leggings. She had the top pulled down over her ass. She reached up to grab a cup from the cupboard, and as she did, the shirt popped up over her ass. And a cute ass it was. And I couldn't seem to take my eyes off it. Even when Belle was talking to me.

"Ahh. And the sleeping beauty has arisen from her sleep." Regina turned around, pulling the shirt back down as she did. Her face was as red as I am sure mine was. But there was nothing I could do about it now.

"Good morning Miss Swan. How do you like your coffee?" Nothing. Nothing was coming out of my mouth. And I don't think anything was going to.

"Just give her what you gave me."

"No problem." Regina went to work on making me the coffee, and I took a seat next to Belle on the counter. She gave me a small nudge and finally I was brought out of my dazed state.

"What the hello happened last night?" Her voice was so low I was the only one that could hear her.

"Nothing happened. That's the thing. She slept in the guest room, and I stayed in my room."

"Okay, then why is there is a half-naked woman pouring you coffee in her underwear?"

"Would you please stop calling her 'woman'? This is…"

"Regina." Regina finished as she placed my coffee on the counter in front of me. "You know if you two want to talk in private you should have either left the room, or asked me to leave. But whispering never works. Especially when the person you are whispering about is in the same room at the time of the whispering commencing." She looked towards me, as though I had something wrong. But a smirk quickly took its place. I'll just leave you two to finish your convocation. I need to go change anyway." She left the room, swaying those hips once more. She could poke an eye out with those things. Hearing her go up the stairs, Belle burst into it.

"Is that the same Regina Ruby told you about? The same Regina that is meant to be babysitting Henry? The same Regina you told me you were working with at work?" Before she could even start the next question, which I am certain was just another variation of the first one, I jumped in and tried to explain things.

"Breathe!" She closed her mouth, and took in a much needed breath. "To answer your questions. Yes that is the Regina from work and the one that is meant to be babysitting Henry. They are the same person. And before your brain decides to run wild, nothing happened last night. I gave her a top and a pair of leggings, and she must have taken the leggings off at some point in the night." She looked at me sceptically trying to find something to poke a hole in I am sure.

"Okay, so if nothing happened last night…what has happened between you two? Because there is something happening here. And you can't deny that." Might as well tell her now than leave it till later and maybe never say anything.

"A week ago, when you called me to help you pick an outfit out for your date with Ruby…"

"Oh yeah, remind me to thank you and slap you for that later." Her face wasn't serious so I could assume everything went well between the two, but she wasn't happy that I interfered, which is fair enough.

"Anyway, I left Henry with Regina to go help you, then I came back and had a talk with Henry, about…well everything. From Neal, to my sexuality, to us being a family and all that. He was call with it and he was surprisingly very mature about a lot of it. Anyway, Regina heard some of the conversation and when Henry went upstairs, she came in and kissed me." Belle's face didn't change. She was waiting for me to continue. She figured there was more to the story than that. "I kissed her back but only for a second. I stopped before it actually went anywhere. I don't want anything to happen between us At least not yet. And when I told her that she just told me 'she could wait'. And that was it. We haven't done anything since." At that her jaw dropped. She just stared at me like I was a freak of nature. "What?!"

"Seriously? You told her you didn't want to do anything? And she told you she would just wait."

"I told her I didn't want to do anything until after the event was over and done with. I don't want anything to be awkward or for things to cross-over. You know like the job coming to the bedroom, or the bedroom going to work. It just…I don't want to do that."

"And she understood?"

"Honestly, I think she understands better than I do." Her face went into a state of complete confusion. To be fair what I did say didn't make any sense out of context. "I tried to kiss her again last night before we went to sleep, and she refused. But to meet me half way, she kissed my cheek. Honestly Belle, I think she is really special. She just seems to understand me, and she gets along with Henry, and she is intelligent and…"

"Wow, Emma. You sound like you want to marry the girl. You barely know her."

"I don't want to marry her. But she is certainly someone I want to keep around." I looked down into my cup, and didn't hear another word from Belle, but what did make me jump was the sound of the front door slamming. Regina must have left. Without saying goodbye? Oh god, did she hear the end of the convocation. I quickly jumped from my seat to go open the front door. As it swung open I saw Regina's car driving off down the road. I had never seen someone move so fast. I think I might have just blown any chance with Regina. If I had any chance to begin with.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

**A/N – I really am sorry for the long wait. Thank you Gunner4Life, for all the reviews. You sort of pushed me to try and rattle out this chapter. I hope everyone likes it. Let me know why you think Regina left in such a hurry. I would like to see anyone who can get it right. Have fun. Goodbye my lovelies.**


End file.
